Martin Luther King Jr. And The Civil Rights Movement

During 1954 to 1968, the Civil Rights Movement took place. These years were very shaping for America. Many years prior to the movement, all races, especially blacks had been discriminated against and a lot of this took place through the Jim Crow Laws. Martin Luther King Jr. fought to bring justice and equal rights for all races. The Radical King is a letter about Martin Luther King Jr. personal experience with the Civil Rights Movement; this letter primarily focuses on civil disobedience, moderation, and race. Martin Luther King Jr. and some of his staff went to Birmingham Alabama. They went there seeking to bring peace and justice among all races. Birmingham Alabama, at the time was one of the most segregated cities in the United States

King believed that if they were to refuse unjust laws, then it would give the people no other option then to confront the issues of injustice and inequality (King 130). King said, “One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws” (King 133). King and his staff stood by this, they disobeyed the law in respectful ways in hopes to make a difference. Any law that defiles a human is considered unjust and segregation damages and is demeaning to humans (King 133). Martin Luther King Jr. and many African Americans, and few whites participated in peacefully disobeying the law through a variety of ways. They demonstrated this through sit-ins, freedom rides and freedom marches (Schmidt 140). One of the most remembered ways this group spoke out was by the, March on Washington. The March on Washington focused on jobs and freedom. These people were speaking out for political and social justice

King is disappointed in three main ways, they value order over justice, they believe time will bring freedom and equality and lastly, has an overall disappointment with the white church and its leadership (King 136-139). King hoped that the white moderates would see the need for justice and equality (King 135). Instead, the white moderates wanted peace and hoped that overtime the African American population would gain back freedom. King was optimistic in the white church and believed that they would support him, but they did the opposite. King used the bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama as an example of the lack of support. He had hoped that they would advocate the him and the black population instead, he said, “some have been outright opponents, refusing to understand the freedom movement and misrepresenting its leaders” (King 140). King had hoped that the white leadership would see the need for justice and would help them achieve equality, but it was the opposite. The white church remained silent, and therefore promoting