Yeah, today we honor a legend, this historical moment, MLK
Martin Luther King Jr.'s life began like yours or mine
Born in Atlanta, Georgia in nineteen twenty nine
Martin Luther and Alberta Williams were his parents' names
With siblings Alfred and Willie, Christine Martin would play games
At Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, they were raised
Their father was Minister King, where the congregation praised
Martin graduated from high school early at age fifteen
And went to Morehouse College, grew in knowledge, though just a teen
He learned Thoreau protested slavery in eighteen forty-nine
Then at Crozer Seminary, he sought God's great design
He weighed the peaceful tactics Mahatma Gandhi used at every turn
Though he finished top of his class, he still had so much to learn
So off he went to study at Boston University
Met and married his wife, Loretta Scott, in nineteen fifty three
Learned theology, worked toward diversity, cared for the poor
Till he took a job as a pastor in nineteen fifty four
T'was in Montgomery, Alabama, where hate was winning out
The whites claimed things were separate but equal, but Martin had his doubts
Jim Crow Laws enforced separation between the blacks and whites
Blacks sat in the back of the bus, violating human rights
In nineteen fifty five, Rosa Parks was arrested for sitting in the front
Without a doubt, this historic event forged a battle front
So Martin led a bus boycott, people walked to inspire a fix
Till the protesters glee, the laws were changed in nineteen fifty six
Dr. King preached resistance
Was most effective through non-violence
Martin continued to advocate for the NAACP
He spoke of civil rights as he traveled from sea to sea
Next he led the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
To help people toward the goal of fairness and tolerance
At the Lincoln Memorial, he backed the Civil Rights Act
Which later became a law that no one could redact
He staged sit-ins where blacks would sit in white-only spaces
Arrests followed as segregation fueled hate between the races
In Birmingham, there were boycotts
Against the businesses, they protested
Laws had gone uncontested
Adults and children were beaten, fire-hosed, and tested
The people hoped for a change, but instead were arrested
The media caught it all, shown on every TV station
Heard on radio, in the news, and made an angry nation
Social and financial pressures were felt in Birmingham
It was time to change unfair laws before they heard from Uncle Sam
In nineteen sixty three, JFK introduced the Civil Rights Bill
King held a march in Washington to affirm the people's will
In King's famous I Have a Dream speech, Martin boldly said
His dream was that one day the news of equality would spread
So one day his four children would grow up to live in a place
Where they would no longer dwell, separated by their race
A nation where children aren't judged by the color of their skin
But rather by their character, as it should have always been
Dr. King preached resistance
Was most effective through nonviolence
Dr. King's words were televised, inspired every nation
The Civil Rights Bill passed in nineteen sixty four, a righteous declaration
That same year, Dr. King was honored, as was most deserved
Peaceful opposition was the way he always served
He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, though he had more to promote
Progress had been made, but still so hard for blacks to vote
In nineteen sixty five, he planned a march from Selma to Montgomery
State troopers tried to stop their trek across the country
President Johnson sent his federal troops for their protection
So they had the chance to voice their literacy test objections
Not long after, President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act
Giving all citizens equal rights to vote, as a matter of fact
Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream to liberate
But soon he was assassinated in nineteen sixty eight
President Reagan ensured that his deeds would be retold
Making the third Monday in January a day we'd behold
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a national holiday
A time to remember he paid with his life to bring a better way
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a national holiday
A time to remember he paid with his life to bring a better way
Dr. King preached resistance
Was most effective through nonviolence
Dr. King preached resistance
Was most effective through nonviolence