Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr. was a preeminent leader of the African-American Civil Rights Movement in America. His many accomplishments in advocating for practical suffrage and desegregation are well-known, so this page focuses on understanding his other views.

Politics

 * King was a Democratic Socialist.
 * He voted for Democrats for the presidency in every election except in 1956 and possibly (albeit unlikely) in 1960. While he generally shied away from getting involved in presidential elections, he made exceptions for the elections of 1964 and 1968. In 1964, he strongly opposed the candidacy of Barry Goldwater due to his positions on both domestic and foreign policy. For the 1968 election, he made clear he did not like the candidacy of Richard Nixon or the potential of another four years of Lyndon B. Johnson, but he was particularly displeased with the candidacy of the hawkish Ronald Reagan; he instead drew hope that either Eugene McCartthy or Robert F. Kennedy would be chosen by the Democrats and go on to win the presidency.
 * He was against the Vietnam War.
 * He was in favor of affirmative action.
 * He was against Right-to-Work.
 * He supported family planning.
 * He greatly admired the State of Israel and believed peace could be achieved if the Arabs could be lifted into economic security.