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In Paragraph 40 of "Letter from Birmingham Jail", Dr. King expresses great disappointment in the contemporary church because the churches tended to lean towards the status quo. They hid behind various excuses and commended authority for treating nonviolent demonstrators harshly. He is, however, able to find hope in the spirits of individuals. Dr. King expresses disappointment in the inactivity of the church. Rather than act, churches often preached that segregation versus desegregation was a matter of the state.
In this letter to Birmingham, King explains the disadvantages of the inequality and the injustice of the systematic phases of justice. This passage shows how King and others interact in non-violent settings, protesting and in marching for civil rights. A key part of King’s vision, aside from a quest for racial equality, was the idea of non-violence. He also explains direct action and the segregation of colored people. Dr. King is informing the clergy men on how they are ignoring the way the Caucasian officers are mistreating the African Americans.
In “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” Martin Luther King Jr. is responding to accusations made by eight Alabama clergymen. He asserts that his actions, and the actions of his followers were just and reasonable. He notes that the clergymen claimed he was acting too hastily but King explains that their actions were not hasty. He backs up his actions with persuasive argument and reasoning. He points out ways that others actions have been unjust and immoral.
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham City Jail" is an inquisitive piece of writing, written while MLK was imprisoned in Birmingham in 1963 for his peaceful protests against racial segregation. A response to a critical newspaper article published by local Clergymen, it challenges priorly accepted doctrines and makes many compelling arguments. King's most compelling statement is "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere" because it the denounces toleration of injustice and those who allow it (King). When King says "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere", he is implying that if even the smallest act of unfairness is tolerated, it will take root and spread (King).
History has only proven that the insufficiency of equality as individuals brings hostility between people. For example, the discrimination that people of color had suffered due to the rules and restrictions that were imposed to them. Even though, they were American born citizens, the government was not treating them as equal. Therefore, they started to fight for their rights; most of their manifests were non-violent but due to the discernment from the opposite side some of those protests ended up in riots. Dr. Martin Luther king Jr. even describes their frustrations on a letter that he wrote to his oppose white fellow.
Martin Luther King was a firm advocate of peaceful protests and actions to attain social change; however, these actions failed to bring equality. On April 10th, 1963 the city of Birmingham banned street marches without permission. When King refused to call off his demonstrations he was arrested on April 12, and placed in solitary confinement in the Birmingham Jail. While in jail King read the newspaper ad “A Call for Unity”, calling King’s activities “unwise and untimely”; this ad was a public statement signed by eight Alabama clergymen in protest to King’s actions. In response to this, King writes “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, arguing the points the eight men made in their statements and defending his actions.
In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. led a peaceful movement in Birmingham, Alabama. The purpose of the demonstration was to bring awareness and end to racial disparity in Birmingham. Later that night, King and his followers were detained by city authorities. While in custody, King wrote the famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” This letter voiced out his disappointment in the criticisms, and oppositions that the general public and clergy peers obtained.
Evaluation of Martin Luther Kings Letter by Birmingham Jail Letter by a Birmingham Jail had been written by Martin Luther King from the year 1963. This was an open correspondence written by Martin Luther King by a Birmingham jail in Alabama, where he'd been imprisoned for participating in organization and the arrangement of a protest. The protest was into resistance by downtown merchants and Birminghams city authorities to apartheid. The letter was written in response to a statement by lots of Alabama clergymen who were of the opinion that though wrongs and prejudices existed lately, the struggle against apartheid, wrongs and the prejudices must not be fought in the streets. The clergymen were that this must be taken to courts.
After reading Letter from Birmingham Jail by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., I am convinced that he held his values so dearly that he was willing to die for them. He did not shrink back from engaging in actions that were vital to the civil rights movement, even when it was apparent that his life was in jeopardy. Two of the values that he believed in so much that he was will to lay down his life if necessary were nonviolence and justice. Because Dr. King deeply believed in a nonviolent approach and because he did not want the bloodshed that was sure to follow any violent demonstration, a considerable amount of preparation was made prior to start of the protest to racial inequality. One of the steps that Dr. King mentions as required before
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in his “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, uses the lense of social power in order to get his thoughts across. Social power is the degree of influence that an individual or organization has among their peers and within their society as a whole. This idea is illustrated throughout his letter to show the significance of the disabilities and unfair treatment the black community has faced for the entirety of their existence. African americans have never been able to gain the respect from others they deserve due to the idea that other races have more power on them simply due to the color of their skin. Martin Luther King is able to express these ideas by referencing multiple examples as to how social power has negatively affected their societal presence for many years.
In his ‘Letter From Birmingham City Jail,’ Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stated that “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”(King 64). Though his specific fight during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 60s served as dismantling segregation laws in which separated white and black Americans—particularly in the Southern states of the United States—King preached and sought to obtain human rights for all individuals of all colors and sizes; this is seen through his affiliations with multiple organizations which include The Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights. King’s findings and ideologies serve in correlation with the establishment of the United Nations and its Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948: “Whereas Recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all member of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice, and peace in the world” (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948). King’s activism and commitment to people served a contributing factor in the creation and continued presence of organizations such as the United Nations, and their subsidies, which strive to enhance the development of countries throughout the globe—in particular south nations—ensuring that all beings of this earth are ensured their human rights.
Martin Luther King Jr. writes a letter to a few of his fellow clergymen that he left with the title "Letter from Birmingham Jail." While in jail at Birmingham, King had wrote this letter. In this letter he wrote, King decides to address a few people who questioned his intentions as "unwise and untimely." He also decides to discuss his intentions and why he believes they are not "unwise and untimely." In order to have a better understanding of King's intentions, let us look at his concept of justice and his disappointment in the country he lives in, his disapointment in the church system, and the disappointment in the people of america.
Civil rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr, in his Letter from Birmingham City Jail, argues against criticism from eight Alabama clergymen, and addresses their concerns. He defends his position, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), against accusations of disturbing the peace in Birmingham, as well as explaining his values and opinions. Throughout the letter, King adopts a strong logical and credible tone, and reinforces his position through the use of strong emotional justifications, in order to appeal to the clergymen and defend his public image. Martin Luther King opens up his Letter from Birmingham City Jail by appealing to the clergymen's emotions, and assuring his peaceful response, which he describes in "patient and
King believed that if he could just go to Birmingham, and protest non-violently, that he could make a difference. On April 16, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. was imprisoned, in Birmingham, for protesting the civil rights of Black Americans. While in jail, he began writing a letter addressing the clergymen. His main audience in writing this letter was to the eight clergymen who criticized his actions and also the majority of the population as well. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter From Birmingham Jail”, argues that injustice
In Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “A Letter From a Birmingham Jail,” he provides answers to fundamental metaphysical questions regarding the nature of the human soul. Though his letter is addressed to a group of eight clergymen criticizing his direct action campaign in Birmingham, his ultimate aim is the uplifting of human personhood. Underlying King’s letter is a philosophical, hylemorphic anthropology which puts an anchor deep into a certain conception of personhood, and binds all people who are to read it. He looks deeply at the nature of human beings, as rational creatures who are made to love and be loved, and from thence, deliberates that there is a universal Gospel of Freedom and Justice. Martin Luther King, Jr. asserts that there are universal principles justifying what actions are morally right and wrong, just and unjust.
