Martin Luther King Jr.

By: Cooper L.

Martin Luther King Jr was an inspiration to many people. Though, a lot of people don’t know some of his most interesting facts, just some parts. For example, I bet you didn’t know that the “I have a dream” part of Martin Luther king Jr’s speech wasn’t written in his speech, it was added on the spot! If you want to learn more amazing facts about Martin Luther King Jr, then I recommend you read this report. I hope you enjoy it! 

First, I’m going to tell you about Martin’s childhood. I was born on January 15, 1929, in the city known as Atlanta, Georgia. Growing up, I went to church a lot because my father (Martin Luther King Senior) was a preacher at Ebenezer Baptist Church. This had a great impact on my life and inspired me at an early age to speak up against Jim Crow’s unfair laws and to make a difference in the world. I was highly successful in school, so successful, in fact I skipped two grades in High school and was 15 when I entered Morehouse College.  I was top of my class. 

Second, I’m going to tell you how Martin became the great speaker that he is today. After I graduated from Morehouse College, I became a preacher just like my father. Everybody said I was a great speaker. That got me thinking, with this voice I could help protest nonviolently against Jim Crows laws of the state that were racist and unfair. One of my inspirations was Mahatma Gandhi. He used peaceful methods to help free India from the British. I wanted to use his same methods to free African Americans from segregation. I went on to marry my lovely wife, Coreta Scott. I have two sons and two daughters, Yolanda King, Bernice King, Martin Luther King III, and Dexter King. 

Next, I’m going to tell you about one of his greatest accomplishments, Bus Boycott. During segregation, black and white people were separated from restaurants, and even buses. This got my attention. When Rosa Parks soon refused to give up her seat for a white person and was arrested, many African Americans, including me, were angry. It did not make any sense.  3 quarters of the people on the bus were black. This had gone on for too long, we had to take a stand. So, I planned a peaceful protest.  All African Americans in the town of Montgomery, Alabama would refuse to ride the bus until they gave us equal rights. This would work because the bus would lose their funds and would have to give us equal rights to get their money back and not go broke. 

After more than a year, the Supreme Court made bus segregation unconstitutional. Success! There was much more to finish though. 

Now, I’m going to tell you about one of Martin’s most famous speeches that had a big impact on America. It was August 28, 1963, in Washington D.C. There are over 250,000 people waiting for my speech and other ones too. It was called the “March on Washington.” We did this march because we wanted to show how many people supported the Civil Rights Bill. I made sure that the march was nonviolent. 

The night before the speech I started second guessing my speech. What if it was not good enough? It took all night, but I finally finished my speech. Once I was called up to the podium, I started second guessing my speech again, there is something missing. I started speaking, but then someone inspired mean gave me the part of the speech that was missing. “Tell them about the dream King!” That was the answer, The Dream! 

“When we allow freedom to ring, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last, Free at last. Thank God Almighty, we’re free at last!” I have a dream today!” 

 The I have a dream speech lead to me winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, in Oslo, Norway and was the youngest person ever to win it. It was an honor and I’ll never forget this moment. There was still so much racism though that needed to change. 

 Finally, I’m going to tell you about Martin’s sad death. On April 4, 1968, I visited Memphis, Tennesse only to find out that I would not make it. I was standing on the balcony of my hotel room. There was a gunshot and then I fell. I don’t remember much after that. I was sadly shot by a man named James Earl Ray. 

Little did I know I made history having a holiday on Monday third in January. It is called Martin Luther King Jr. Day 

In conclusion, I had a great time learning about Martin Luther King Jr. He was a very important person in our history. He fought for what he believed in even when threatened. His dream isn’t perfect but is getting better. Martin’s dream inspired me to do him for my report because I want to spread his dream to other people. Thank you for reading!   

Sources:  

Colbert, David. Martin Luther King Jr. Simon and Schuster, 2009., Contributors to Wikimedia projects. “Martin Luther King Jr. - Wikipedia.” Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia, Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 14 Nov. 2001, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther_King_Jr., “Kid’s Biography: Martin Luther King, Jr.” Ducksters, https://www.ducksters.com/biography/martin_luther_king_jr.php. Accessed 30 Apr. 202, World Book Article – Alton Hornsby Jr. Published in 2010, Buckley, James. Martin Luther King Jr.: Voice for Equality! Simon and Schuster, 2019, and Gregory, Josh. Martin Luther King, Jr. 2014. 

Abraham Lincoln

              

By: Cooper                                                                                                                                                                                              

Abraham Lincoln was one of the most interesting presidents. He guided our country through political crises, not to mention the Civil War. He was a strong leader and helped our country end slavery. He never gave up. In his own words, here’s how he did it. 

I was born on February 12, 1809, in a log cabin in Kentucky.  We were a very poor family, so I had to help around the house. My parents could only afford one year of schooling, so I taught myself how to read. In 1818, our mother, Nancy, died from milk sickness. We were already sad enough due to being poor. It took a long time to bounce back. Eventually, our father, Thomas Lincoln, set out to Illinois to find a new wife. Once we made it, he asked a lady whose husband died to marry him. Her name was Sarah and once I met her, I knew she was a keeper.  

In 1842, I met the love of my life, Mary Todd. We went on to have four kids, Robert, William, Tad, and Eddie. Sadly, Eddie died after his fourth birthday, William died right by me in the White House when he was 11, and Tad died when he was just 18. If you’ve ever experienced losing a child, then you know that it’s the worst thing that could ever happen to you.  I had to endure the loss of three children. 

In 1854, I was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives. I ran for the United States Senate and unfortunately lost. Soon I decided to run for president and faced my opponent, Stephen A. Douglas. The election was held on Tuesday, Nov. 6, 1860. I won by getting 55% of the vote! I was now the president of the United States of America! 

It was not an easy task being the 16th president, as many people hated me. One of the reasons is that I wanted to end slavery and most people in the North agreed, but the South did not. This led to the start of the Civil War.  

That year, in a historic moment, I signed the Emancipation Proclamation, which changed the course of our history. During the war, on November 19, 1863, at a cemetery in Pennsylvania, I gave a speech that honored the soldiers who had died in the war. The Gettysburg Address was a short speech, only being 271 words long, but it had great meaning. After the speech, I was worried people did not think it was a very good speech, but I wanted to honor our soldiers for their bravery, which would never be forgotten. 

In 1865, the war was coming to an end.  I was determined to free the slaves, which I was able to do by signing the Emancipation Proclamation.  The Emancipation Proclamation was a document that helped end the war and freed the slaves from the Confederacy. The only catch was the rebellious states were still slaves. Many people were not happy with me, and some even gave death threats, but I knew it was the right thing to do. 

 On April 14, 1865, I went to see a play with my wife. The play was a comedy.  Suddenly, I heard a big boom! That was the end for me. I was shot in the back of the head by John Wilkes Booth, an actor. I eventually died of a head wound on April 15, 1865.  I was 56 years old. 

         In conclusion, President Lincoln was one of our most important presidents because he helped make the world a better place. He stood by his convictions and wasn’t afraid to act on them. We need more leaders like him. 

        

                                                      Resources: 

. Wikipedia 

. Student Dictionary 

. Google 

. The movie Lincoln 

. My parents