13 Chapter 9 The Peace Prize

Chapter 9 The Peace Prize Martin showed people all over the world the power of words, not fists. In 1964, Martin was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. This award is given almost every year to the person or group who has done something important in the cause of world peace.

Martin was very grateful for this award. But he knew it wasn't his alone—it belonged to the thousands of brave people who had taken part in the nonviolent fight for equal rights. Martin gave away all the prize money—fifty-four thousand dollars—to civil rights groups. NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

ALFRED B. NOBEL WAS A SWEDISH CHEMIST AND ENGINEER WHO INVENTED DYNAMITE. WHEN NOBEL DIED In 1896, HE LEFT NINE MILLION DOLLARS In HIS WILL TO ESTABLISH THE NOBEL PRIZE. THE PRIZES ARE AWARDED ALMOST EVERY YEAR In SIX CATEGORIES: PEACE, LITERATURE, PHYSICS, CHEMISTRY, PHYSIOLOGY OR MEDICINE, AND ECONOMICS. MANY DIFFERENT PEOPLE--FROM TEACHERS TO JUDGES TO POLITICIANS—CAN BE

NOMINATED FOR An AWARD. In SOME YEARS, AS MANY AS TWO HUNDRED NOMINATIONS ARE RECEIVED. THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE HAS BEEN AWARDED TO NINETY-FOUR PEOPLE AND NINETEEN ORGANIZATIONS SINCE 1901. SOME PAST WINNERS INCLUDE: PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER--2002 NELSON MANDELA—1993 ELIE WIESEL--1986

MOTHER TERESA—1979 Martin Luther King, Jr., had won the Nobel Peace Prize, but he knew he had not reached his goal: equality for all people. He thought about the defeat in Albany and the success in Birmingham. Surely there were other cities where Martin could help end segregation. Martin's eyes turned toward Selma, Alabama. Although half of Selma's residents were black, only 1 percent was registered to vote. The voting office was only open a few days a month, which made it difficult for people to register. In addition, the literacy test was so hard, Martin said that even the chief justice of the Supreme Court might not know some answers. For weeks Martin led groups to the courthouse to register to vote. But it was not legal to hold marches in Selma. So the groups were arrested. Thousands of black people were sent to jail just because they wanted the right to vote.

On February 1, 1965, Martin Luther King, Jr., was arrested during one of the marches. While Martin was in jail, a group called the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee invited a man named Malcolm X to Selma to speak. Malcolm X was a young black leader who disagreed with Martin's peaceful protests. Malcolm X did not believe in fighting with words alone. He thought it was okay to use your fists, and more. Malcolm X also spoke about "black pride"—how blacks should respect themselves, and be proud of their race.