Martin Luther King, Jr is one of the iconic figures of 20th century history, and one of the most influential and important in the American Civil Rights Movement. John Kirk here presents the life of Martin Luther King in the context of that movement, placing him at the center of the Afro-American fight for equality and recognition.

This book combines the insights from two fields of study seeking to combine the "top down” national federal policy-oriented approach to the movement with the "bottom up” local grassroots activism approach to demonstrate how these different levels of activism intersect and interact with each other.

Part 1 Background; Introduction Martin Luther King, Jr.: Saint, Sinner, or Historical Figure?; Chapter 1 The Origins of the Civil Rights Movement; Part 2 King and a Fledgling Movement, 1955-1960; Chapter 2 Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Early Life, 1929-1955; Chapter 3 The Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955-1956; Chapter 4 The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), 1957-1960; Part 3 King and a Developing Movement, 1960-1963; Chapter 5 Sit-ins and Freedom Rides, 1960-1961; Chapter 6 The Albany Campaign, 1961-1962; Chapter 7 The Birmingham Campaign, 1963; Part 4 King and an Expanding Movement, 1963-1965; Chapter 8 The March on Washington, 1963; Chapter 9 Mississippi Freedom Summer, the MFDP and the FBI, 1964; Chapter 10 The Selma Campaign and the Voting Rights Act, 1965; Part 5 King and a Fractious Movement, 1965-1968; Chapter 11 The Chicago Campaign, 1965-1966; Chapter 12 The Meredith March Against Fear and Black Power, 1966; Chapter 13 Civil Rights and the Vietnam War, 1965-1967; Chapter 14 The Poor People's Campaign and Memphis, 1967-1968; conclusion Conclusion: Martin Luther King, Jr., the Civil Rights Movement, and the Black Freedom StrugglePart 6 Documents;