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The Epic Interactive Encyclopedia 1998
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Epic Interactive Encyclopedia, The - 1998 Edition (1998)(Epic Marketing).iso
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King,_Martin_Luther_Jr
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1992-09-01
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1929-1968. US civil-rights campaigner, black
leader, and Baptist minister. He first came
to national attention as leader of the
Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycott 1955, and
was one of the organizers of the massive
(200,000 people) march on Washington DC 1963
to demand racial equality. An advocate of
nonviolence, he was awarded the Nobel Peace
Prize 1964. He was assassinated in Memphis,
Tennessee by James Earl Ray. King's birthday
(15 Jan) is observed on the third Monday in
Jan as a public holiday in the USA. Born in
Atlanta, Georgia, son of a Baptist minister,
King founded the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference 1957. A brilliant and
moving speaker, he was the symbol of, and
leading figure in, the campaign for
integration and equal rights in the late
1950s and early 1960s. In the mid-1960s his
moderate approach was criticized by black
militants. He was the target of intensive
investigation by the federal authorities,
especially the FBI under J Edgar Hoover. His
personal life was scrutinized and criticized
by those opposed to his policies. Always a
target of segregationists and right-wing
extremists, he was shot and killed in
Memphis, Tennessee. James Earl Ray was
convicted of the murder, but there is little
evidence to suggest that he committed the
crime. Various conspiracy theories concerning
the FBI, the CIA, and the Mafia have been
suggested.