Martin Luther King, Jr.'s ideas--his call for racial equality, his faith in the ultimate triumph of justice, his insistence on the power of nonviolence to bring about a major transformation of American society--are as vital and timely as ever. The wealth of his writings, both published and unpublished, is now preserved in this authoritative, chronologically arranged multi-volume edition. "Volume III" chronicles the Montgomery bus boycott of 1956 and Dr. King's emergence as a public figure who attracted international attention. Included is the galvanizing speech he gave on the first day of the bus boycott, transcribed from a fragile tape recording and published here in its entirety for the first time. Also included are his remarks to an angry crowd after the bombing of his home and his powerful speech at the 1956 NAACP convention. King's words from this period reveal the evolution of his distinctive blend of Christian and Gandhian ideas and show his appreciation of the broader significance of the Montgomery movement, a protest that revealed the "longing for human dignity that motivates oppressed people all over the world." "The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr," is a testament to a man whose life and teaching continue to have a profound influence not only on Americans, but on people of all nations.
"The Martin Luther King, Jr., Papers Project at Stanford University was established by The Center for Nonviolent Social Change, Inc., in 1984,"

More than two decades after his death, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s ideas - his call for racial equality, his faith in the ultimate triumph of justice, and his insistence on the power of nonviolent struggle to bring about a major transformation of American society - are as vital and timely as ever. The wealth of his writings, both published and unpublished, that constitute his intellectual legacy are now preserved in this authoritative, chronologically arranged, multivolume edition. Faithfully transcribing the texts of his letters, speeches, sermons, student papers, and articles, this edition has no equal. Volume II begins with King's doctoral work at Boston University and ends with his first year as pastor of the historic Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. It includes papers from his graduate courses and a fully annotated text of his dissertation. There is correspondence with people King knew in his years before graduate school and a transcription of the first known recording of a King sermon. We learn, too, of King's marriage to Coretta Scott. Accepting the call to serve Dexter, King followed the church's tradition of socially active pastors by becoming involved in voter registration and other issues of social justice. In Montgomery he completed his doctoral work, and he and Coretta Scott began their married life. King's early papers document the formative experiences of a man whose life and teachings have had a profound influence not only on Americans but on people of all nations.