Alyssa Kimbrough

12-12-14
A Leader Through Time: Martin Luther King Jr.

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and
convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy (King, Jr.) Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. was a Baptist Minister and civil right activists that represented his quote
throughout his fight to eliminate racial segregation and unfairness throughout the United States.
MLK is looked at as one of the most effective and influential leaders in the world, an important
factor that helped develop his leadership incentives/morals can be shown during his adolescence
to mid twenties. Some of his main leadership qualities he portrayed were: he remained
completely committed to his cause/belief, he had very strong communication skills, and he
walked the talk.
On January 5th, 1929 a child was born named Michael King- his name was later changed
to Martin- that was to become a great leader. King grew up in a family that encouraged him to
notice and act on civil injustices, his parents also always supported his choices. MLKs family
awareness and support motivated King to institute a change at a very young age. Secondly, King
also did very well in school, he graduated high school at only 15 and was awarded with his PhD
at 25. MLKs good academics gave him the knowledge and critical thinking skills he needed to
piece together his dream and to actually bring it to reality.
Kings led a huge social movement that went against society, there were many that hated
him immensely. Some people took this hated to an extreme level and threatened him or even
violently attacked him. For example, while he was at a book signing in New York a woman
named Izola Ware Curry stabbed him. Although King was severely injured by this, he did not

give up (his persistent determination later caused him his life in 1968 by a gunshot). Although he
was attacked and arrested numerous times he did not let that stop him, and the way he responded
to this was peacefully, with faith and forgiveness. One of MLKs major beliefs was that we
should all solve a conflict with nonviolence. Man must evolve for all human conflict a method
which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love
(King, Jr.) This quote from Martin Luther King Jr. reflects his negative feelings toward violence,
he recognizes that it is human nature to respond aggressively but he believed that if we work
together we could change that. He led by these values by only encouraging and participating in
nonviolent protests, by doing this he showed the world that equality can be addressed positively
and peacefully. In 1964 Kings value and method was recognized and he won a Nobel Peace
Prize for fighting racial equality through nonviolence.
In history all great leaders share the same effective communication skill, which includes
Martin Luther King Jr. To spark awareness to any conflict using communication is key, MLK
delivered hundreds of speeches that influenced people across the U.S. This is a quote from his
most famous speech I Have A Dream: I have a dream that one day right there in Alabama little
black boys and little black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as
sisters and brothers (King, Jr.) A key factor in communicating is being direct with your speech
and making sure everyone can clearly interpret your message, just in this sentence alone he lets
us know his concern and vision for the future. Also by using children in his example it shows us
the innocence in society and will make us more sympathetic to the issue.
Lastly, Martin Luther King Jr. walked the talk. What I mean by this is that he did not
just speak about making a change; he actively included himself in the movement. The time is
always right to do what is right (King, Jr.) This quote from MLK represents his many effective

right actions that had helped with the freedom struggle. King was apart of the Southern
Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) which gave him the opportunity to help out in the
freedom struggle, for example the SCLC joined the St. Augustine movement. King also involved
himself in nonviolent protests and he stood with his followers. Also, he met with important
political figures (such as the president) many times to discuss equality and eliminate segregation
laws. Although MLKs main concern was civil rights he also brought awareness and protested to
other causes. I.e. to bring awareness to poor housing conditions King and his wife moved into an
apartment in South Harlem. Because MLK turned his words into actions this showed people that
he was determined and honest, they will respect a leader that does what they advise others to do.
Every third Monday of January we commend the amazing leader Martin Luther King Jr.
because of his huge impact in history. His devoted commitment, communication skills, and
honest actions changed the way people thought, addressed, and responded to civil rights forever.
He also fought and helped end segregation laws which brought forth the beginning of equality in
the United States. Overall, MLK shows us that just one person can create a huge institute of
change that can impact the world.

Bibliography:
"Martin Luther King, Jr. Quotes." BrainyQuote. Xplore, n.d. Web. 11 Jan. 2015.
<http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/m/martin_luther_king_jr.html>.
"Martin Luther King Jr." Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2015. Web. 12 Jan. 2015.<http%3A
%2F%2Fwww.biography.com%2Fpeople%2Fmartin-luther-king-jr-9365086%23synopsis>.
"Major King Events Chronology: 1929-1968." The Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and
Education Institute. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Jan. 2015. <https%3A%2F%2Fsiteproxy.ruqli.workers.dev%3A443%2Fhttp%2Fmlk-kpp01.stanford.edu
%2Findex.php%2Fresources%2Farticle%2Fking_major_events_chronology_1929_1968%2F>.
"10 Leadership Qualities of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." Brandred Resume. N.p., n.d. Web. 11

Jan. 2015. <https%3A%2F%2Fsiteproxy.ruqli.workers.dev%3A443%2Fhttps%2Fbrandredresume.com%2F2014%2F01%2F20%2F10-leadershipqualities-of-dr-martin-luther-king-jr%2F>.