"While others were advocating for freedom by 'any means necessary,' including violence, Martin Luther King Jr. used the power of words and acts of nonviolent resistance, such as protests, grassroots organizing, and civil disobedience to achieve seemingly impossible goals," according to The King Center.

Every year we honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. in January. Here's everything you need to know about the holiday.

His name has gained wider recognition in more recent decades, but civil rights activist and organizer Bayard Rustin has long deserved a much more respected place in the history of the Civil Rights