Martin Luther King Jr., a Baptist minister and civil rights leader was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. King played a pivotal role in the civil rights movement in the United States. A gifted orator and a man of great courage and morals, he preached a nonviolent approach the fight for civil rights. He made himself known when helping out Rosa Parks, an African American woman that refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. From there King traveled throughout the USA, leading marches, giving speeches, serving as a role of strength and example to those that believed in his equality. In 1964, Martin Luther King received the Nobel Peace Prize for his work as an activist, becoming the youngest recipient of this award. In April 1968, he went to Memphis Tennessee, to help striking garbage workers fight for better salaries. It was on this trip that King was assassinated, April 4, 1968, on the balcony outside his Memphis motel room. On April 5, President Lyndon B. Johnson declared Sunday April 7, 1968 to be a national day of mourning. His funeral was held at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta on April 9, 1968. He was laid to rest at the South View Cemetery. More than 300,000 people marched through Atlanta with his horse drawn coffin.