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Injustice within the justice system
Injustice within the justice system
Injustice within the justice system
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" This means that even if there is a shred of injustice somewhere in America, it is a threat to all the justice everywhere
King later writes, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” (4). He is justified and had every right to protest in the city of Birmingham, for civil liberties and justice. Challenged by the opposing, white population, comfortable in their segregated establishments and ideologies. King utilizes logos to help his audience understand the urgency of the Civil Rights movement and directly address the criticisms against his presence in Birmingham. “Sometimes a law is just on its face and unjust in its application.
¨Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”(King 582). Martin Luther King Jr was a civil rights activist who fought for civil rights; he wrote to eight white clergymen in jail. King got arrested for fighting for African American rights. King was very passionate and emotional about civil rights. Martin Luther King Jr. suggested the idea of people having a moral responsibility to infringe on unjust laws.
In the article “Letter from Birmingham Jail” Martin Luther King Jr. responds to clergymen who described his civil rights activities as “unwise and untimely”. Dr. King argues that while just laws should be obeyed, unjust laws aren’t binding because they go against decent morality and they degrade human lives. He explains the three-hundred-year struggles by African Americans to gain their basic rights and responds to criticism of being an extremist for trying to force change on this matter. Ultimately his reasoning is that those attempting to find a resolution to the injustice and unequal laws of the land should not be punished if they are doing so nonviolently, even if they break some just laws. I argue in favor of this idea that unjust laws
The essay “The Church and Prejudice” written by Frederick Douglass, and the essay “Ending His Fast” written by Cesar Chavez both had major impacts on the people of their time and on ones for many years to come. Types of speeches and essays like these helped spread awareness and led to the eventual change in the stance of modern day churches. They both talk about forms of civil rights for the minorities from the church, but they do differ on the subject of different ethnicities and life factors that were written about. Douglass and Chavez wrote these articles to spread awareness about the treatment of the church towards the minorities.
Racism and discrimination have been and continue to cause injustices around the world. One example of this that seems to keep coming back is the Scottsboro Boys case. This case took place in the 1930’s, but continues to impact society even today. Nine young black men were falsely accused of raping on a freight train over a fight with a group of white men. The case of the Scottsboro Boys was an unfair case that greatly influenced the civil rights movement and the society we live in today.
In chapter one, "Privilege, Oppression, and Difference, Allan Johnson begins his argument that "difference is not the problem"( Johnson, pg 5 ). The author goes on to explain that difference by itself is not the problem, rather difference in conjunction with our ideas that cause fear. That being said, discrimination was a bigger problem in the past and it still is today. We starts with talking about Rodney King and racism he had received from police officers in Los Angeles. Johnson continues on with the idea that people are judged not for who they are or the things they have accomplished, but how they are perceived by others.
Dr. King’s “Letter From a Birmingham Jail” goes in to detail about the injustice that existed on the streets of America in the 1960s, and it can still be used now to discuss the injustice on the streets today. King discusses how unjust laws were made to broken (such as with Hitler and the Jewish population and the Hungarian Freedom Fighters), and that no progress would ever be made if actions weren’t taken immediately. Today, issues with police brutality and racism against immigrants (“They are taking our jobs!” is a line often used by the white population of America when talking about jobs they would never consider applying for anyway) is at an all-time high, and Dr. King’s letter can be applied to the current situation: action must be taken immediately.
The events all around us influence the way we think and the way we act, whether we realize it or not. Events that happen during our lifetime affect us in ways we may not even be able to comprehend at the time. In the 1970s and even today the issue of minorities not being treated the same as the majority in America is a prevalent topic that is being talked about more and more. In recent times racial segregation is a major issue all around us, but it is mostly depicted in the news. Ernesto Quiñonez observed racial discrimination all throughout his lifetime, whether it was through people around him or even people he looked up to.
The atrocities that happened in Birmingham are what lead to King’s famous quote, “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice
He defines a just law as “a man-made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God,” while defining an unjust law as “a code that is out of harmony with the moral law” (King 128). He argues that unjust laws hurt not only the oppressed but also the oppressor because the oppressor has been given a “false sense of superiority” while the oppressed, a “false sense of inferiority” (King 129). Thus, people have the moral obligation to defy laws that are unjust and obey laws that are just. King proceeds to write about segregation, describing it as unjust because “segregation distorts the soul and damages the personality”; therefore, it is a law worth opposition. King attests that one who breaks an unjust law must be willing to accept the penalty given in order to avoid anarchy and lead to a positive societal impact.
This letter provides an unbeatable argument against injustice “injustice anywhere
Injustices, tragedies, and unfortunate circumstances have plagued humankind for all of existence. Many of these problems have arisen from the society of man, and could not be found in nature. The hatred, selfishness, prejudice, and maliciousness seen in so many injustices man created unnecessarily, as well as all the suffering it causes does not need to exist. If an individual witnesses a crime or injustice occurring, it is their responsibility to defend the weak and fight for whatever is morally right, even at the cost of themselves.
In the eyes of Martin Luther King Jr., Justice within a society is achieved through the implementation of just laws. Furthermore, “just laws are regulations that have been created by man that follow the laws of God for man” (“Clergymen’s Letter”). Any law that does not correspond with the ideals of God and morality are considered to be unjust or a form of injustice. King identifies that injustice is clearly evident within the justice system. This injustice can truly be seen through the misconduct imposed toward the African American community.
Comparison of Methods: Indian Independence Movement and The French Revolution: The French Revolution (1789-1799) and the Indian Independence Movement (1858-1947) were two parts of history that were similar in some ways while different in others. In the French Revolution, the French government was the Old Regime and that divided France into three Estates. The first estate and the second estate accounted for 3% of the French population and were made up of nobles and the clergy. These people had to pay a very small amount of money as income tax and in some cases no money was taxed. The third estate accounted for 97% of the French population and was made up of the bourgeoisie, which were the French middle class and the poor.