How Did Martin Luther King's Work Affect The Civil Rights Movement?

Introduction

There is an old saying that goes, “words are stronger than actions”. The power of words over actions have been well demonstrated by famous civil rights protesters, such as Martin Luther King Jr. who once stated, “nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical pain, but internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you also refuse to hate him”(Ameigh n.d.). In his thirty-nine-years of life Martin Luther king excelled through his education, helping him become the voice for the needs of African Americans (“Major” n.d). He was inspired by civil rights activist Gandhi, after meeting his followers on a trip to india (Dear 2012) and he marched on the streets of Washington D.C for freedom and equality (“Major”

This was a time where equal but separate was taken to extreme levels (Jim 2015). This era started in the southern borders but swiftly made its way to other parts of the country. The actions that were taken against blacks because of Jim Crow became more than just racist laws, it became the white communities way of life (Jim 2015). Before Jim crow even became a possibility America was a country of slaves. Changes only started to be made when Abraham Lincoln was elected the new president of the United States. But there was a problem in the midst of all this new change and prosperity, southern states did not seem to accept the election of Abraham Lincoln. States like Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas seceded from the union. They initiated the first attack at Fort Sumter declaring war on the Federal troops, making this the start of the civil war (“The Civil”

While boycotts were tactics that he tended to use often, he never stopped using the power of words. With this knowledge he wrote some of the most beautiful and eye opening speeches during the civil rights movement, along with letters to high ranked officials. His presidential position, of the Montgomery Improvement Association allowed him to be in a position where he was able to contact President Dwight D. Eisenhower (“Little” 2014). He requested that the nine African American students of Little Rock, Arkansas be allowed to attend Central High School an all white school at the time (“Little” 2014). On their first day of school a throng of white students and parents, along with the governor of Arkansas and the Arkansas national guard, blocked the entrance to the school not allowing the nine black students inside (“Little” 2014). However once the NAACP was involved lawyer Thurgood Marshall won a federal court case against the governor and the school (“The U.S. Civil” n.d.). On September 23, 1957 the students were escorted by the police into the school, however they were soon rushed home due to the fear of an escalating mob violence (“Little” 2014). Martin Luther king wrote again to Eisenhower pushing him to “take a strong forthright stand in the Little Rock situation” (“Little”