Ethos Pathos Logos In Letter From Birmingham Jail

In the year of 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested on and placed in jail. While there, he wrote a six page letter to the clergymen of Birmingham on why he had a right to be there protesting. In order to persuade them, he used ethos, pathos, and logos in his writing. King’s letter not achieved his original goal in proving his right to protest, but the letter now provides an example to today’s generation on how to peacefully protest the problems that are faced today.
One of the very first topics that King addresses in his letter is this: his right to be in Birmingham, Alabama. The eight clergymen of Alabama called him an “outsider” in their public announcement. In response to this, King states that he and his company were invited in order

These “laws” were the root of all of the injustices that were being committed. It is a well known fact that everything used to be separated into two opposite parts. There were the “Whites Only” and the “Black Only.” King gives multiple examples on how segregation has affected his life personally. One of them being having to explain to his young daughter that, “Funtown is closed to colored children” (King). Imagine the being told that as a young child. Imagine the feeling that one would get when made aware of the fact that the color of skin she was born with, is factor she is going to have to consider for the rest of her life - a factor that will limit and dictate what she does. The before mentioned quote is a perfect example on how King was able to personally relate to the clergymen, and all other white men and women who did not support desegregation. He uses his children and his personal experiences with the unfair laws he has to face to provide support for his claim. Not only does he appeal to their ethos by using his children, but he also appeals to their logos. In the third page of his letter King, expresses his understanding on his and his companies willingness to break laws. It is explained that only the “unjust” laws are to be broken and, "An unjust law is no law at all." By relating to, and showing his understanding of the concerns of his opposers, King makes his letter

wrote the “Letter From Birmingham Jail,” and not much has changed. There is still racism and prejudice everywhere in America. Unfortunately, right when everything started to get better, because of Obama, the country took a huge step back by electing Donald Trump to be the President. According to S. Suresh of Fair Observer, “His rise to ascendancy was driven by a campaign that not only lacked basic human decency, but was filled with xenophobia, Islamophobia and misogyny. His hateful rhetoric has successfully managed to stoke the simmering racial tensions in the country…” (Suresh). Of course, violence is not the only problem that people of color are still having to face. In an article by Velma McBride Murry, the some of these problems get addressed. One of those problems being the education received. “Over the past 50 years, there has been considerable progress in the educational attainments of African Americans, although they still lag behind the levels of Whites,” (Murry). Even today, it is still possible to learn from King’s teachings. Non-violence is the number one thing he stood for, and that is exactly what could be used in today’s country. "Nonviolence does not seek to defeat or humiliate the opponent but to win friendship and understanding," King teaches. "The nonviolent resister must often express his protest through noncooperation or boycotts, but