Essay about Martin Luther King

Submitted By jogeorge33
Words: 1044
Pages: 5

Many young people are inspired by the actions of others. These actions challenge many people for generations to come. Throughout history, many people were influenced by another person at some point. Many historical figures can be looked upon to learn the lessons to help and develop future generations. Many people have been influential to me and have contributed to my personal growth. The one person that has had a great influence on me throughout history was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. grew up in the Deep South during a time when segregation was prevalent. He lived in a time where many facilities were separated based on the color of a citizen’s skin. The world he lived in was cold and ruthless for a colored person because they had a profuse amount of challenges that they faced constantly. “Separate but equal” was far from reality. They did not receive the same respect as non-colored people. Their rights were limited because the type of government that was appointed at that time was very corrupt and wrong. It was innate at birth that you did not have equivalent right as the majority if you were colored. I became inspired by how Dr. King dealt with his struggles during his lifetime. As a student, I faced many struggles growing up. I did not fit into social groups and I was not very successful academically. I was a student who had low grades in all classes because I could not comprehend everything that was being taught to me but I also did not make an attempt to do great. I wanted to change my ways of being a mediocre student and become an honorable student. So I began to read more about Martin Luther King. As he had risen to adulthood, King felt that something had to be done to terminate segregation so a world with equality for every person would emerge. He started to protest for equal rights and to end segregation. Since King read many books on peace and followed the peaceful ways of Gandhi, he did not want to use any actions of violence during his time of protest. He did not want protesters to resort to violence because he believed that violence only led to more violence. The first step was the bus boycott in Montgomery. Rosa Parks, a black woman, sat in the front of a bus and refused to give up her seat to a white man who asked. It was an enormous deal at that time because the colored people had to sit in the back of the bus while the non-colored people were allowed to sit in the front. Parks was arrested for her defiance. Martin Luther King set up protests to boycott buses. Colored people began to walk to places they needed to go rather than taking the bus. Many buses were losing business as people began to discourage each other from riding the bus. Eventually, the government ended the segregation on buses. This was only a small step to equality because discrimination was still present. I took little steps too as I attempted to become a better student. I began to start doing my homework, class work, began to pay attention and participate in class. This led to me gradually getting higher grades in class. I knew I could always perform better and I continued to work harder just as Dr. King did during his lifetime. He went to Birmingham, Alabama to start protests because this city was greatly segregated. Many supporters wanted to make the nation aware of the problems occurring in the South. King inspired so many people that they did not care if they were arrested because they started to believe that what they were fighting for was so important. King was arrested during the protests in Birmingham. He was later released. He wanted to finish the fight. He set up a protest in Washington, D.C on August of 1963. There were millions of supporters there