Martin Luther King Jr (1929 - 1968), an American Baptist minister, played a prominent role in the US civil rights movement from the late 1950s. Speaking up against racial discrimination, his non-violent actions contributed to the end of legal segregation of black people in the USA. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1964. Four years later, he was assassinated during a visit to Memphis, Tennessee.
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BBC NI Politics Show presenter Jim Fitzpatrick looks at Barack Obama's US election win and the 40-year-old shadows cast by his predecessors.
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The BBC's Nick Bryant charts the epoch-making progress of US President-elect Barack Obama.
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News Audio and Video
- The history behind Barack Obama06 Nov 08
James Naughtie discusses Barack Obama with Martin Luther King's sister Christine King Farris.
Listento "The history behind Barack Obama" now - Wheeler reports on LA riots04 Jul 08
As the BBC's foreign correspondent in America, Charles Wheeler covered the LA race riots and the assassination of Martin Luther King.
Watch "Wheeler reports on LA riots" now