Troy Jackson

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Description

Without question, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is the face of the civil rights revolution that reshaped the social and political landscape of the United States. Although many biographers and historians have examined Dr. King's activism, few have recognized the pivotal role that the people of Montgomery, Alabama, played in preparing him for leadership. King arrived in Montgomery as a virtually unknown doctoral student, but his activities there—from organizing the Montgomery bus boycott to building relationships with local activists such as Rufus Lewis, E. D. Nixon, and Virginia Durr—established him as the movement's most visible leader. This book illustrates how the people of Montgomery influenced King as much as he influenced them. In Montgomery, brave citizens, both black and white, spearheaded a protest movement that also launched King's public ministry. It demonstrates that spending his formative years in the city of Montgomery gave King the skills and experience to become a hero to generations of Americans.

Publication Date

2008

Publisher

The University Press of Kentucky

Place of Publication

Lexington, KY

ISBN

978-0-8131-3390-4 (paperback)

eISBN

978-0-8131-7317-7 (pdf version)

eISBN

978-0-8131-3867-1 (epub version)

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5810/kentucky/9780813125206.001.0001

Keywords

Martin Luther King, Civil rights, Montgomery, Rufus Lewis, E. D. Nixon, Virginia Durr

Disciplines

African American Studies | Civil Rights and Discrimination | Political History | Social History | United States History

Notes

Introduction by Clayborne Carson.

Becoming King: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Making of a National Leader
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