While in Atlanta we took the time to visit the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site. The momument consists of several buildings surrounding MLK Jr.'s boyhood home on Auburn Avenue, a visitor's center, and the original Ebenezer Baptist Church where King and his father, MLK, Sr. both pastored. A tour through Freedom Hall takes you through King's birth and childhood years, his call to the Civil Right's movement, his quest for non-violence, and his tragic death.
King was an activist and prominent leader in the African American civil rights movement, using nonviolent methods following the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. In 1964, he became the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to end racial segregation and racial discrimination through civil disobedience and other nonviolent means. By the time of his death in 1968, he had refocused his efforts on ending poverty and stopping the Vietnam War.
King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and Congressional Gold Medal in 2004; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was established as a U.S. federal holiday in 1986. In 1977, a memorial tomb was dedicated, and the remains of Martin Luther King Jr. were moved from South View Cemetery to the plaza that is nestled between the center and the church. Mrs. King was interred with her husband on February 7, 2006.
It was an honor and a privilege to spend the day reflecting on the meaning of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life, his words, all he stood for, and to embrace the concepts of peace, acceptance, non-violence, and equality.
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