Martin Luther King | Origin of Street Names

Martin Luther King Jr. (1929 - 1968) was an African-American Protestant pastor and the greatest advocate for racial equality and civil rights for black people in the history of the United States.

He was born in Atlanta, Georgia, into a Baptist minister's family. This is evident in his name, given to him in honor of his father, Martin Luther King Sr., and both names were inspired by the famous German reformer and creator of Protestantism.

Raised in a Christian spirit from an early age, yet constantly confronted with strong and legally sanctioned racial discrimination, Martin Luther King seemed destined to become the greatest nonviolent fighter for the human and civil rights of African Americans.

Inspired by the work of the great Mahatma Gandhi and guided by Christian principles and the Gospels, he used exclusively nonviolent methods in his struggle towards the ultimate goal - writing, preaching, public speaking, and calling for general civil disobedience in the face of unjust discrimination against African Americans.

Through his intense nonviolent activism, powerful messages, and the reactions he provoked wherever he appeared, he profoundly shook the American system, which had been largely rooted in racism. His speeches resonated throughout the continent, raising awareness of the rights of black people like a tidal wave, and his followers and admirers grew in numbers.

However, by challenging the longstanding American order, Martin Luther King became a "thorn in the side" for many. From individuals to various organizations, even certain structures within the American establishment, he had no shortage of enemies. Several surviving assassination attempts only made his fight more significant and resonated throughout the world.

Martin Luther King delivered his most significant and perhaps best-known public speech in the history of the United States in 1963 in Washington, D.C., before approximately 250,000 followers. The fight for the civil rights of black people subsequently became the central political issue in America. In the same year, King was named Time magazine's Person of the Year in the U.S., and the following year, at only 35 years old, he became the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. The charismatic pastor's immense popularity and his powerful words were further amplified by his speeches during protests against the Vietnam War in the late 1960s. Thanks in large part to M. L. King, a wave of significant social changes began to sweep and transform the entire United States during those years.

However, the enemies persisted. On April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King was assassinated during one of the numerous speeches he delivered in Memphis. Over 300,000 people attended his funeral.

Almost every city in the United States now has streets, boulevards, schools, libraries, or bridges bearing his name. In Serbia, the name of this great fighter for racial equality is carried by streets in Kragujevac and Zemun Polje.