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Baby Names Inspired by the Civil Rights Movement

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Updated March 2, 2017
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Today we honor the life and the work of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the sacrifices he made to ensure equality and justice for every citizen in the United States. Because of his struggles, young Americans today are endowed with certain invaluable  rights and because of the depth of his work — and of those who worked diligently by his side — we’ve rounded up some of the best and most inspiring baby names! Any baby who’s name-spiration came from any of the iconic Civil Rights Movements’ bravest individuals should be proud!

Coretta - inspired by Coretta Scott King, wife of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Ella - inspired by the human rights activist, fought to empower black women

Ruby - inpsired by Ruby Bridges, the first African American woman to attend an all white school in the south

Septima - inspired by Septima Pointsette Clark, the activist who fought for equal pay for all teachers

Martin - inspired by Martin Luther King, Jr.

Luther - also inspired by Martin Luther King, Jr.

Montgomery - home of the Montgomery, Alabama bus boycott

Malcolm - inpsired by Malcolm X (known as Malcolm Little)

Langston - inspired by Langston Hughes, voice of the Harlem Renaissance

Lola - inspired by the local leader of the Birmingham, Alabama Campaign

Jackson - inspired by the activist Jesse Jackson

Birmingham - inpsired by the location, Birmingham, Alabama

Rosa - inspired by Rosa Parks

Oscar - inpsired by Oscar Stanton De Priest, the first African American elected to Congress in the 20th century

Lorraine - inpsired by the Lorraine Hotel, site of the assassination of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Mason - inspired by the temple where Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke the day before he was assassinated

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Marshall - inspired by Thurgood Marshall, the first African American Supreme Court justice

Whitney - inspired by Whitney M. Young, who fought to end employment discrimination in the South

Berea - inspired by Berea College, which was used in 1855 to educate black and white students together, before segregation

Selma - inspired by the First Baptist Church located in Selma, Alabama, which led marches that helped the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

Michael - Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s real name

Dexter - the name of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s son

Georgia - inspired by the home of the King Center in Atlanta, Georgia, which was established after the death of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

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