Martin Luther King Influence

557 Words3 Pages

Rafael Cezair

Martin Luther King Jr. was a catalyst and a driving force for the Civil Rights Movement. Though he wasn't the only Civil Rights leader, he was one of the most influential spokespersons in America, emphasizing peace, and nonviolence. He helped end segregation through protests, speeches, and writings.

As a matter of fact, one of the things that Martin Luther King first did was help organize the bus boycott. After Rosa Parks was arrested for not giving up her seat to a white man, many African-Americans began to walk to work instead of taking buses. This greatly impacted the bus companies economically because African-Americans were 75% of bus riders. This forced the bus companies to integrate and was eventually mandated by law. The bus boycott incident forced other cities in the south to rethink their laws regarding segregation. For example, on January 10, 1957 “bombs destroyed five black churches and the home of Reverend Robert S. Graetz, one of the few white Montgomerians who had publicly sided with the MIA(Montgomery Improvement Association)”(1). …show more content…

The opportunities for African -Americans and people of color to be recognized as political leaders opened up, because Martin Luther King was a recognized leader and world renowned spokesperson. Martin Luther King Jr`s dream is still alive today.and to further explain Martin Luther King`s influence in the Civil Rights Movement, you may go to these three links that will help you understand the impact and role he played in the Civil Rights Movement. http://biography.yourdictionary.com/articles/martin-luther-king-progress-civil-rights-movement.html http://www.youthforhumanrights.org/voices-for-human-rights/champions/martin-luther-king-jr.html http://www.civilrightsmovement.co.uk/martin-luther-king-movement.html