This course explores Martin Luther King's emergence, ideas, and impact as a protest leader. Topics will include the relationship between King and Presidents Kennedy and Johnson, the FBI's covert attempts to discredit King, and how the US government’s interaction with mass protest movements promotes and limits social change. Students will assess King's political strengths and weaknesses and the criticism he faced from rivals and opponents over his tactics, leadership style, vision for America, and critique of US foreign policy.
