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In 1964, Martin Luther King Jr. won the Nobel Peace Prize. This award is given almost every year.
It goes to whoever has done the most to promote peace. King was 35 years old. He was the youngest person ever to get the prize. In December, he went to Oslo, Norway, where the awards event was held. When he came home, King was showered with honors. The city of Atlanta, where he lived, gave him a dinner. Black and White people sang the civil rights anthem, “We Shall Overcome.” Only a few years before, King had been arrested in Atlanta for trying to eat at an all-White lunch counter.
King spoke at the dinner. He said, “I must confess that I have enjoyed being on this mountaintop and I am tempted to want to stay here and retreat to a more quiet and serene life. But something within reminds me that the valley calls me in spite of all its agonies, dangers, and frustrating moments.” The valley that called him? It was Selma, Alabama.
◀ The 15th Amendment to the Constitution was passed in 1870. It guaranteed that U.S. citizens could not be kept from voting “on account of race, color, or previous conditions of servitude.” But it was hard for Black men to register to vote. The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote in 1920. But Black men and women often waited all day to register. Then they’d be turned away. Black people also had to pass tests that showed they could read. The tests had questions that few White people could answer. Many Black people who tried to register were threatened. Some were beaten. Some were hanged.
▲ Why did voting matter? Without the right to vote, Black people had no hope of changing their government. There would be no Black sheriffs, judges, or mayors. Plus, elected white officials would be more likely to respect the rights of Black people who voted. After all, they owed their jobs to the people who elected them. King wanted all Black people to have the right to vote. In January 1965, he chose Selma, Alabama, as the place to begin his drive. In Selma, he led hundreds to the courthouse to register. They were turned back. Then they were arrested. King was arrested again, too. The charge? Parading without a permit.
“I believe firmly that love is a transforming power that can lift a whole community to new horizons of fair play, goodwill, and justice.”
▲ The marchers tried a second time. Then a third time. They finally set out on the historic 54-mile march on March 21. This time, Army troops and the National Guard protected them. The trip took five days. When the marchers arrived in Montgomery, they were overjoyed. They proudly sang, “We have overcome today.”
◀ In 1965, President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law. It guaranteed that Black people could safely register. Even those who could not read could vote.
