Martin Luther King Jr., once said, "Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable…Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals."

King, the most prominent figure in the modern civil rights movement, worked in the public spotlight for 13 years--from 1955 to 1968--to fight for desegregation of public facilities, voting rights and an end to poverty.

What men offered inspiration to King to lead these battles?

Mahatma Gandhi is often noted as providing King with a philosophy that espoused civil disobedience and nonviolence at its core.

It was men such as Howard Thurman, Mordecai Johnson, Bayard Rustin that introduced and encouraged King to read the teachings of Gandhi.

Benjamin Mays, who was one of King's greatest mentors, provided King with an understanding of history. Many of King's speeches are sprinkled with words and phrases originated by Mays.

And finally, Vernon Johns, who preceded King at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, readied the congregation for the Montgomery Bus Boycott and King's entrance into social activism.