BACK TO HEROES

Reduction Relief Print is by Stephen Alcorn - used here with permission

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 1929 - 1968

"Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated at the age of 39. He died in the midst of a great battle--a battle for equality among all people, regardless of color or creed. For fourteen years, beginning at the age of 25, King fought courageously and tirelessly for the truths in which he believed. In 1964, at the age of 33, he was the youngest person ever to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Martin Luther King stood in the face of anger, bigotry and injustice and had the courage to fight these opponents of freedom. He did not use anger or hatred when he battled against oppression, rather he used love and nonviolence. He learned the philosophy and practice of nonviolent resistance from the teachings of Jesus, Henry David Thoreau and Mahatma Gandhi.

Martin Luther King, Jr. gave speeches, led marches, went to jail several times, organized nonviolent demonstrations, and fought tirelessly for truth. Many of King's friends and fellow freedom-fighters were injured and killed. He always faced the threat of death, yet he marched on fearlessly towards that which he cared for more than all else: freedom. Martin Luther King, Jr. authored five books.

King is one of only two Americans whose birthday is observed as a national holiday. The nation's first president, George Washington, is the other."
Copyright 1995 by S.G. McKeever and Andrew A. Kutt. This will be removed at author's request. Link where I obtained the information is no longer on line.  From America's Heroes and You

NOTE: THIS  WRITING WAS TAKEN FROM AMERICAN HEROES AND YOU (NOV. 27, 1999) SINCE THE PAGE 
IS NO LONGER  AVAILABLE ONLINE FOR THIS UNIT WITH  MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS, I HAVE INCLUDED IT.

A copy of America's Heroes and You may be able to be obtained contacting PEACE RUNS INTERNATIONAL 
In doing my internet search, I was unable to locate information on this publication.

Peace Runs Publishing
A Division of Peace Runs International, Inc.
61-20 Grand Central Parkway (B408)
Forest Hills, NY 11375

Resources

Martin Luther King Day EconEdLink Lesson - with information on Civil Rights

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Lesson Ideas - from National Education Association

Links below are approved by the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Estate. Students should look here first. Permission has been granted by the Estate for these sites to provide resources.

Martin Luther King Online (MLK Online)

Martin Luther King, Jr. "I Have a Dream" Speech

Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute  Biography

Martin Luther King, Jr. Liberation Curriculum approved lessons for social studies and language arts from Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute. Stanford University

Nobel Prize - Biography

Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King

The King Center has biographical information. Link can be found on line (permission is needed to link)

Teachers should browse for more acceptable sites if needed. Do not allow students to use sites that do not display the license agreement with the King Estate and copyright statement if intellectual property of the Estate presented. Use authoritative sites for research. Read all terms of use agreements on Educational web sites to see what is available to you. 

*NOTE TO TEACHERS: I have written to the Estate of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. asking permission for you to use Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as a hero with your students. The Fair Use provision of copyright law allows students to use Dr. King as their hero. If you would like to post the work online, you will need to plan ahead. You will need to fill out a license agreement form and/or non-profit organization form.  It may take 5 to 8 weeks to get a reply. 

Contact:  Leslie R. Chavous
Licensing Coordinator
IPM/ The King Estate
449 Auburn Avenue
Atlanta, GA 30314
404-526-8968
404-526-8969 Fax

You will receive a form to fill out stating your purpose. The form needs to be filled out and returned to the address above along with all of your lesson materials.

How to Legally Do a Portrait of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 

Here is an easier way to allow your students to do a portrait of Dr. King.

I believe that Freedom of Expression* allows the child to select Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as his/her hero.  Student Guide to Freedom of Speech

I did find images of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. when I searched in Google images for Martin Luther King public domain. I will provide images for you if needed where permission is already granted for in class use already (email me in advance)

You can change the scenario....

Have the lesson that the student was commissioned by the local newspaper to create a portrait for a story/article they are running on D. Martin Luther King, Jr. for Martin Luther King Day. (There permissions are already assumed for the child).

You will not be able to publish the student work on your school web site unless you receive the licensing agreement to use King's image.

Add in your lesson plan something like this...

Use of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s image constitutes "fair use" of such material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Act. The image of Dr. King is intended primarily for research and educational purposes, has been previously published, and is used without profit or publication

Don't give up ....Keep the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. alive.... I have a dream, too.

*Freedom of Expression®