When people get incarcerated for a period of time, usually they do a lot of thinking and writing. Dr Martin Luther King Jr was no different. When he got jailed in Birmingham in 1963, he penned "Letter from Birmingham Jail", which explained his positioning on his nonviolent approach to fighting for Civil Rights. Along with Plato, Descartes, Mills and Rousseau, Dr Martin Luther King Jr was one of the greatest philosophers in history because his nonviolent approach to fighting for Civil Rights (for all colors) sparked a great revolution, throughout the United States and also influenced the rest of the world.
Martin Luther King Jr believed in fighting for individual Civil Rights, but he was not an anarchist or against the government. King did not promote people to break the law, even if the law was unjust or immoral. "In no sense do I advocate evading or defying the law... That would lead to anarchy" (King, 4) However, he wanted to change the laws and fix the laws. He believed that all people deserved Civil Rights. King wanted 'God given rights ' to be fairly distributed, applied and protected by the government, regardless of a person 's color. He also saw that black people were fighting for protective laws and to eliminate discrimination for centuries. However, no solution has occurred. "We have waited for more than 340 years for our constitutional and God given rights." (King, pg 3) Therefore, he felt that people needed to do something to see change and the only way he
Martin Luther King, Jr. sat in Birmingham jail not because he committed a crime but because he took part in a non-violent demonstration. King received an invite to a nonviolent demonstration by a local church and was later jailed for his actions (King 1). While in jail, King reflected on the injustice in not only Birmingham, but the world as well. King addressed injustice as a universal wrong which can only be undone by people themselves and not by action forced by the government. He quickly announced that keeping the peace and obeying the law are not the same, the people ahead do not simply relinquish their role because of the selfishness of the human nature. Those who are oppressed will seek to leave injustice behind. Martin Luther
Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the most famous civil rights activists in the history of the United States. He gave several important speeches and promoted non-violent protests. His most famous speech was “I Have A Dream”, around a quarter of a million patrons, black and white, attended this empowering speech at the March on Washington on August 28, 1963. The reason his speech was vastly successful in the movement against segregation and injustice was because of its repetitiveness.
Martin Luther King Jr. believed in transcendence, believing we all should be treated fairly and that right and wrong does exist. King’s critics violate non-contradiction, appropriate authority, and equivocation. The oppress gets freedom when they demand it. In Letter from Birmingham Jail, King uses evidence to prove his statements. King believed in just and unjust laws. To King a just law is a man-made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. Unjust laws can be broken if it’s something you believe in and needs to be stood up for, even if that are consequences that go along with your decision. King wanted better for African American and did not want them to suffer from unfair justice any longer. Dr. King was a motivational speaker who supported non-violence actions and believe that no man should fight with their hands but with their words. In Letter from Birmingham Jail, King is not only appealing to Christian Authorities but to other beliefs and religions also. King blames the regular white society instead of the powerful white supremacists because they were the ones that are not doing anything to help the blacks overcome the triumph. The legislator states that it is democratically correct that only the white can vote. The white individuals equivocate the word democratically saying that only whites can vote, when in reality anyone can vote. Just because a person makes a claim about the blacks, does not mean they have all of the credentials to make that direct claim. King refers to the bible and utilizes it in his letter by saying that by doing right and believing in God does not mean that the result will always be in your favor the first time around. King says that even though doing right is not always easy, we should not give up and continue to strive for the success that you
Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King was a prominent voice on behalf of African-Americans in the fight for racial equality during the mid- 20th century. In one particular situation, Dr. King was jailed in Montgomery, Alabama, for protesting the unfair treatment of Blacks in the area. While in jail, King penned a letter to fellow civil rights leaders that were critical of his rebellious tactics. In the letter, Dr. King states that “the purpose of direct action is to create a situation so crisis-packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation.” Dr. King believed that the only remaining option in advocating for racial equality was to peacefully violate the law in order to bring about negotiations with lawmakers. Without Dr. King’s peaceful disregard for the law, African Americans would have had to continuously endure unfair treatment and persecution while drawing little relevant attention to their issues. This serves as significant evidence to suggest that Civil Disobedience is sometimes necessary in a society, as the non-violent actions of racial equality supporters led to civil rights negotiations in
“Letter from a Birmingham Jail” discusses the life of Martin Luther King Jr. He became a leader in the civil rights movement to end racial segregation and discrimination in America during 1950s and 1960s. According to the letter, “I think I should indicate why I am here in Birmingham, … So, I, along with several members of my staff, am here because I was invited here. I am here because I have organizational ties here. But more basically, I am in Birmingham because injustice is here.” Also, he became a leading spokesperson for nonviolent methods of achieving social change. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” after he was arrested for peacefully protesting segregation and racial terror in Birmingham.
After being arrested and imprisoned in Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote one of his most famous works to the people of Birmingham, titled “Letter From Birmingham Jail on April 16, 1963. This piece speaks of the evils of the segregation laws and how the blacks had been treated unfairly in Birmingham, in an attempt to get the white people to support the desegregation of Birmingham. He had been imprisoned because of his participation in a civil disobedience protest, and he is arguing that, even though the white people of Birmingham see the black’s way of protesting as wrong, it is a justified way to fight back against the unjust laws. In “Letter From Birmingham
The reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. was a man of virtues in many aspects, particularly in time that was filled with unnecessary tension and violence. He was one of the most, if not the most prominent, civil rights activist in the nineteen sixties, as well as a devoted man of religion. Often King when addressing the civil issues we once faced, he would make a point to include his religion to assert his point. King felt it was important to include his region into the subjects he cared strongly about. As well as being a reverend and civil rights leader, he was man of intelligence and education. Unlike some of his counter parts that used fear mongering to control the social setting as well as the status quo of the South, King used his logic, education, and critical thinking skills to help form a new Southern United States. He makes a prime example of this in his “Letter form a Birmingham Jail” using classic rhetoric in his letter.
Martin Luther King Jr. spoke a lot from religious texts and wanted to use only non violence to end the racism and injustice. He wanted to try to make America a more unified country where everyone can live a good life and have the rights they deserve. He believed that, ”we have an opportunity to avoid
Martin Luther King Jr. was a Baptist minister and an activist who led the civil rights movement in the 1950. He was a fundamental force behind the civil rights movement that ended legal segregation. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. But he was sadly assassinated in 1968 on a second floor balcony of Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee…
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was one of many men in history that have impacted the lives of many around the world. He helped fought to bring awareness to help abolish segregation within the United States and within the hearts and minds of many.
many people still did not want to change. It took a strong leader, a person who believed in peace and justice for blacks, and Martin Luther King Jr. was that man.
“I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality...I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word.” These famous words by the honorable Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. best capture his frame of mind and the hopes he once held for the African American people during his fight for civil rights. King was an activist, pastor, and strong leader whose actions played an integral role in the advancement of the African American people as a whole. Born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1929, King spent the overwhelming majority of his life leading the African American Civil Rights Movement by using his very effective non-violent approach. Based off of his strong Christian beliefs, King led a multitude of boycotts, protests, marches, and speeches over the course of his life. These include the Montgomery Movement as well as one of his most famous speeches, the “I Have A Dream” speech.
Martin Luther King Jr. lived in a world where racial tensions were high and not everyone was treated equally. He fought for a world where there would be no more segregation and no more disparity between the ways blacks are viewed compared to that of whites. In doing so, he preaches about nonviolence in order to keep the movement honorable. Although Machiavelli believed that the ends justify the means no matter how terrible those means were, the evidence will show that King 's ideas that the means used to reach an end should be pure are more reasonable.
August 28, 1963 (Eidenmuller) marked a very important day in history that had an impact not only on America, but the whole world. On this day, Martin Luther King Jr. presented his well known I Have a Dream speech that aimed to eliminate racism, inequality and discrimination. He strongly believed that one day people would put their differences aside and come together. So, what happened to that dream? Along with other equality initiative ideas, they rarely make it past the idea stages or end in the actual eradication result. It is clear to us that even after 51 years, our societies still struggle with accepting full equality. Within those 51 years we have made a mass amount of progress but, a common thought would be that after this long the issue should have been eradicated. Two essays that can be used as an example of proof that racial inequality still exists in our society are, Black Men in Public Spaces by Brent Staples and Who Shot Johnny? by Debra Dickerson. In these essays, both provide solid evidence to support their main goal with the use of different writing styles, tone, and rhetorical devices to display how African Americans are perceived and treated by society.
Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. Believed in achieving equality through peaceful demonstrations: “Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred” (King, pg.3 ¶.1). He felt that equality had to be gained through honorable, civil ways otherwise those fighting for equality were no better than the slave owners. We can see this best when he says, “We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protests to degenerate into physical violence” (King, pg.3 ¶.2). MLK felt that it was in the best interests of all parties for black to integrate into society. A couple of his quotes that show this best are, “I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave-owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood” (King, pg.4 ¶.6). and “I have a dream that one day in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification, one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers” (King, pg.5 ¶.2).