Without the works of Martin Luther King Jr, the world we live in today may not be how it is. We live in a society where all men and women are created equal despite the color of your skin. People of all colors can go to school together, eat together, and bond with each other despite what their race might be. All possible due to the endless amount of work and sacrifices made by King. “I am extremely grateful for the work of Martin Luther King” says Cameron Williams ‘20. “If Martin Luther King hadn’t done the work he did I wonder how the world would be.” says Alana Lay ‘20.

  Prior to Martin Luther King’s social movement, people of color were restricted from going to the same school as white people, living in the same areas as white people, sitting in the front of the bus, and even drinking from the same water fountain as white people. King refused to live in a world that did not allow him to express his unalienable rights listed in the constitution. He led movements such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott, spoke publicly at places such as Southern Christian Leadership Conference and March on Washington, and wrote letters from his very own jail cell. These were all in attempt to fight for the rights he was promised.

On April 4th, 1968 Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated. He was fatally shot from his motel balcony, where he had traveled to support a sanitation workers’ strike. “It is extremely sad that MLK lost his life just because he wanted his race to be treated equally. He also had a family and young kids that he was wrongfully taken from.” Despite his death his legacy will forever live on as we even have day of appreciation dedicated to him called “MLK Day” on the third Monday of every January.