Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a very important piece of America as we know it today. He was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. He was an American Christian minister and activist who became the most visible spokesperson and leader in the Civil Rights Movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968. King is best known for advancing civil rights through nonviolence and civil disobedience, inspired by his Christian beliefs and the nonviolent activism of Mahatma Gandhi. King grew up with two siblings and the family was very involved is his church choir. His father however was very abusive towards him which caused a distant relationship between them. King was initially a skeptic of the Christian faith, but he later concluded that the Bible “has many profound truths which one cannot escape". King was very well known for his public-speaking and was a key part of his high school debate team. During his junior year, he won first prize in an oratorical contest sponsored by the Negro Elks Club in Dublin, Georgia. On the ride home to Atlanta by bus, he and his teacher were ordered by the driver to stand so that white passengers could sit down. King initially refused but complied after his teacher told him that he would be breaking the law if he did not submit. During this incident, King said that he was "the angriest I have ever been in my life." Later in his life he became the outright leader for the civil rights movement which changed America forever.

We can learn a lot throughout the life of Martin Luther King Jr. Through his life, God wanted to show everyone what it means to be a leader and to stand up for what is right. King led a movement and stood up for what’s right even when it seemed wrong in American culture at that time. King defined what it meant to be a leader. He didn’t care if he would be popular, he didn’t care about the possible dangers that could come as a result of the movement, he only cared about what was right. The Beatitude that represents King’s life is, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” Those who lead with pure and right intentions will see the works of God and his good doings. With his pureness in leadership, we saw America change for the better and saw our nation mold into a people who accept one another in peace.