Human salvation lies in the hands of the creatively maladjusted.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

About Martin Luther King Jr.

Portrait of Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American civil rights activist and Baptist minister who was a prominent leader of the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968. He advanced civil rights in the United States through...

More quotations from Martin Luther King Jr.

Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

hate spirit nonviolence violence

As you press on with justice, be sure to move with dignity and discipline, using only the weapons of love.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

justice love dignity discipline

The nonviolent approach does not immediately change the heart of the oppressor. It first does something to the hearts and souls of those committed to it. It gives them new self-respect; it calls up resources of strength and courage that they did not know they had. Finally it reaches the opponent and so stirs his conscience that reconciliation becomes a reality.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

strength hearts change conscience respect nonviolence courage oppression self-respect

We are called to play the good Samaritan on life's roadside; but that will be only an initial act. One day the whole Jericho road must be transformed so that men and women will not be beaten and robbed as they make their journey through life. True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it understands that an edifice that produces beggars needs restructuring.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

The question is not whether we will be extremist but what kind of extremist will we be.

—Martin Luther King Jr.