Inequalities are entirely unnecessary and unacceptable in the society that we live. Inequalities such as racism, sexism, and ageism are the major problems around the world. It is very shameful to go through these issues in the 21st century because of the amount of dedication that our ancestors put in past decades. For example, Martin Luther King Junior said, “ There comes a time when one must take the position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right.” This quote sums up how civil rights movement were significant to Martin Luther King Junior. His campaign was possible by his countless hours of work, determination, and devotion to this idea of All men are created equal. However,
The Civil Rights Movement & the Black Middle Class: A Proposal In 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. inspired a generation with his "I have a Dream" speech. He said that he wanted his children to grow up in a country where they were not judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. Today, over a quarter century later, one looks at contemporary society and wonders how well has America lived up to this challenge. While there are certainly still problems with race relations, discrimination still exists and hate-crimes still occur, an argument can be made that American society has come a long way towards realizing King's goal.
During, the fight for civil rights in the late 1950s and 1960s two men stood up to lead the black community to fight for their rights and their equality. In the 1960’s it was a hard time for black Americans to consider themselves as equals due to the laws in the United States of America. The Civil War had stopped slavery but hadn’t stopped discrimination towards blacks. To help their fellow African Americans, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. both wanted to find a way that could and a way that should help all African Americans receive equality in a world where they weren’t wanted.
Dr. King Jr. outlines the path from racial injustice to justice in the society by the use of nonviolent campaigns. These campaigners “dramatize the issue until it can no longer be ignored” (King) by the eyes of those with the power of
Dr. Martin Luther King, King discusses several actions the people must stop making and prejudices they must stop holding along with actions that individuals such as the observant white moderate must start taking for there to be a successful Utopian effort towards the improvement of societal relations. Although King considers what he has written as long for a letter, the content is concise and carries powerful relevance to the issue of societal segregation. By now, most of the civil right issues with the law have been resolved or improved, but many of the concerns from King are still applicable to current issues such as that of being defined as an outsider and what it takes to be considered an American by your neighbor. King’s large approval of nonviolent protest as a means to establish negotiation helps make efforts to achieve a more perfect society. Also, it is portrayed as a proper form of revolution that belongs in a Utopian society’s setup.
Many people believe that racism finished or disappeared after the Civil Rights Movement in 1960 but its signs are seen in the society around us even nowadays. Even though people have fought so much for the equality of the races it seems like the white supremacy always finds a way to show itself and suppress the wanted equality in one way or another. But going back in time, remembering one of the most important movements in the history of the US and of the world which has been the African-American Civil Rights Movement, whose leader was Martin Luther King Jr. “Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American pastor, activist, humanitarian, and leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement.
In his letter, written in Birmingham City Jail on 16th April, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. touches a serious problem, which is inequality between white and black people; it is a response to a clergymen statement about activities that took place in their times. The church called them „unwise and untimely” and King decided to answer to this criticism, although he normally would not do that, as he received many hateful and judgmental comments on his actions and himself and it would have taken a lot of time and effort to notice all of them. First of all, the clergymen talk about how badly in time are presented those activities when they should have been more concerned about what they actually want to change. Spending time on debating about how
In his letter, King addresses that “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly” (272). Although there is more adding on, these remarks alone show why Martin Luther King Jr. was widely considered to be a great and important leader during the civil rights movement. In short, King refers to the likes of injustice, and how even a small portion of it can branch out into a large-scaled issue.
believed that not only was it the responsibility of individuals to remedy the situation of racial injustice to achieve inequality but also it was the job of society as a whole (the state). However, Martin Luther King Jr. noted in piece titled, “Letter from the Birmingham Jail” (1963) that, “We know through painful experience that freedom is not voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.” (MLK, 580) I find this quote to be important as during the creation of our founding documents, the founding fathers were very intentional as to what they wanted. It was not in the interests of the founding fathers to provide equal rights to everyone, as doing so would ultimately put them all on the same pedestal which would not give them the level of superiority in which they believed they were entitled to.
The Civil Rights Movement in the United States is synonymous with two key figures. Both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. played roles of their own in progressing their race forward in 1950s America. While they both took very different routes and had competing ideologies in how the African American race would move forward they were equally important. When studying key activists it is important to understand their motivations, where they came from, and what they had hoped to achieve. Key speeches given by both of the highly talented protagonists of this essay are an important medium from which to gather this information.
Throughout history there have been many civil rights activists who have inspired and changed the world. These Activist create movements whose purpose is to create a progressive society with equal justice and opportunity for all. There were two movements that were particularly important in the United States during the 1920s and the mid 1950s. In those movements were activists such as W.E.B. DuBois, Marcus Garvey, Booker T. Washington, Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, and Malcolm X. When looking at each activist and their beliefs it is apparent that there are similarities between the older activist and younger ones. All wanted equality among races, but when discussing how to obtain it their paths had differed.
Martin Luther King Jr, a Baptist and church member, was arrested for protesting and fighting for civil rights peacefully, he saw that 8 white clergymen from Alabama had written a response about him and they criticized him and his followers' actions, he quickly wrote a letter in the spaces of whatever paper he could find. MLK used powerful words and phrases that carried a lot of emotion. He also employed parallel structures to emphasize his points and make them more memorable. He uses parallel structure by saying “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” practically saying that it's everyone's business, including his. This has the effect that it makes not only the audience but also the clergymen feel almost an urgency to act and that even a bit of injustice can jeopardize everything His intended effect was to have an extremely large impact on the reader and the clergymen and wants them to realize his point as well as sympathize with his actions.
Today, social and equality issues that happened decades ago now is present and is even a larger debate since years ago they were ignored. Comparing the urban period, then and now, Martin Luther King and Malcolm X accomplished something, which
“We are no longer slaves, but we sure aren’t free!” (Pat’s Justice) This line was by an African-American poet I heard speak about racial inequality and injustice he had faced growing up in an unprivileged neighborhood. Racism and discrimination remains to try to pierce through the skin of many throughout the globe.
Many countries concurred with Luther King and agreed with his ideas because he made a difference for African-Americans and took a stand against racism. Yet the question today, over forty years later is: Was the African-American civil rights movement an overall success? Or is it the same now as it was back in 50’s and 60’s? For the purpose of this assignment the author will explore the literature and discuss the notion that racism and equality has changed as a result of the civil rights movement.
The Man with a Dream Martin Luther King Jr. famously said, “I look to a day when people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” He was one of America’s most influential civil rights leaders to ever exist. He was very passionate about his progression of nonviolent protesting and raised plenty awareness towards the media of racial inequalities eventually working towards a significant change that would change the world forever. Martin Luther King Jr. positively affected the world by becoming the leader of the civil rights movement and bringing racial acceptance to the U.S. through nonviolent protest. King was very inspired by India’s revolutionary civil rights leader, Gandhi.