Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. He was born into a society that treated him inferior to whites just because he was African American. As a bright boy in a declining culture, his father reassured him that he was as good as anyone else. He was determined to work hard and prove his equality regardless of race. He decided to give his best and graduated from high school at the age of fifteen. Martin Luther King Jr. then attended the distinguished school; Morehouse College, where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1948. He subsequently enrolled in graduate studies at Boston University, completing his doctoral residency in 1953. In 1957, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference , who organized civil rights activities throughout the United States. In August 1963 he led the great march on Washington, where he delivered this memorable speech to 250,000 people gathered at the Lincoln Memorial. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech is one of the most memorable speeches he has ever given. His speech was inspirational and uplifting to many black citizens of the 1960s. King presented his speech because, although the Declaration of Independence stated that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” , this statement was not exactly true for African-American society. White society continued to disown African Americans by forcing them to attend different schools and drink from separate fountains. King was giving his speech to let people know that he was going to... middle of paper... it's only one step closer if they stick with the actions they started until the end. Martin concludes his speech by joining the crowd in song. He distinctly chooses “My country belongs to you.” It appeals to ownership of their country and pride in freedom. If every believer followed him, freedom would resonate in a multitude of places across the land. Freedom will resonate in places that will affect all people. He concludes: “when we allow freedom to ring…all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics will be able to unite and sing in the ancient Negro spiritual: Free at last! Finally free! Thank Almighty God, we are free at last!” Martin Luther King Jr. chooses his words carefully for this part of his speech, choosing many different cultures that have had their own personal civil rights struggles.