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Civil Disobedience Martin Luther King

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Civil disobedience is defined as the refusal to comply with laws or to pay taxes and fines, as political protest or peaceful form. I strongly believe that peaceful resistance to laws positively impacts a free society; especially depending on the situation at hand, similar to Martin Luther King non-violent tactics to stop racial segregation. An action like that doesn’t result in an instant change in the world but it brought notice to the problem. There was a gradual change that he contributed to the civil rights movement. He wanted Justice for his people and he did everything in his power to do so. A more modern situation where there were multiple protest with peaceful resistance was the presidential election, in which caused a lot of controversy. …show more content…

Martin Luther King wrote in his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" in response to eight white clergymen who attempted to unite white society against the civil rights movement with their article “A Call for Unity”. King painstakingly wrote and released his letter. Within its contents, Dr. King argued that the civil rights movement was a human movement not a black person 's movement. Indicating that he wants everyone to prosper. This makes a complete difference as far as the reason behind the movement and the intentional effects that the person is intended for. He makes this clear when he cites “Whenever necessary and possible, we share staff, educational and financial resources with our affiliate…Birmingham invited us to be on call to engage in a nonviolent direct-action program if such were deemed necessary (King, “Letter from a Birmingham Jail”).” Through these examples, King is attempting to express that the civil rights movement wasn’t just focused on blacks in particular. It was focused based on human rights because they were segregated and discriminated against. He didn’t want the movement to be about just race, he wanted all people to be accepted as humans and stop the injustice of segregation. These examples provide clear evidence for his argument of the civil rights movement being a human rights movement, and not a black movement. King labels these events and traumas as examples of injustice. Because justice is an abstract concept, King goes on to define it as injustice as “a code that is out of harmony with the moral law...a human law that Is not rooted in eternal law and natural law; any law that degrades human personality is unjust.” In other words, the unjust law is only directed to one minority group, meaning that one group can’t do certain things that the other group can and not get punished for it. Treating one group as less and degrading them, making them

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On April 16, 1963 Martin Luther King, Jr. while confined in the Birmingham City Jail wrote a letter to the clergymen whom disapproved of his actions by calling him and other nonconformists “outsiders coming in”. During the civil rights movement the city of Birmingham was known to be one of the most segregated city in the United States. The City of Birmingham was known for its police brutality against blacks. They’re where also many unsolved cases such as bombing of homes and churches occupied by blacks. Kings letter was an opportunity for him to express the purpose behind the nonviolent campaign.

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Dr. King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”: Just and Unjust Laws Martin Luther King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is a letter to eight white clergymen while he’s sitting in a jail cell, the result of a protest in Birmingham, Alabama that King, a Georgian, traveled to attend. Due to the criticisms of the clergymen, he commences his letter by explaining why he needed to come to Birmingham. King states that he was there for a multitude of reasons, the first being that he had organizational ties to Birmingham, the second being that he was there because there was injustice in Birmingham. He states that as a citizen of America, injustice in Birmingham is not removed from justice anywhere else because everything is interrelated, and that injustice

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In Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” he is addressing the Clergymen, more specifically the white church and its leadership who criticized his efforts in the civil rights movement, by calling his demonstrations unwise and untimely. He is also simultaneously addressing the national audience as well in letting them know of the injustices of the time. It was 1963, and Martin Luther King Jr. wrote this letter from inside a jail cell. He had been arrested during an anti-segregation march for not having a valid parading permit in Birmingham, Alabama. In this letter he addresses the criticisms that were brought forth to him.

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In the “letter from Birmingham Jail” by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., he uses pathos, logos and rhetorical devices such as imagery, sarcasm and biblical allusions to show how his work of nonviolent protests are smart and how Birmingham has violated their civil rights. He expresses himself in his letter by explaining why he can not wait any longer because of the countless murders, the unsolved bombing, lynching, and violence towards the black community. MLK Jr. came across a statement which was a call for unity by eight Clergymen while being in the Birmingham city jail because of him not having a license to protest. In response to the eight Clergymen, Dr. king decided to write a historical letter letting them know that freedom was not an option because of the false promise and the continued violence. The letter is written to inform the people who are against, neutral and with segregation that it is time to take action and prove to the clergymen why he will stand up for what is right.

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He explained why the protesters were civilly infringing racist laws and city ordinances; why the protesters had truth and justice; and how he was thwarted with the clergyman and white moderates in the South who said they supported his cause. In his “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, Dr. King incorporates biblical and historical allusions to give him credibility with his target audience, the clergymen. Additionally, Dr. King subtly asks rhetorical questions and makes logical conclusions to force his audience to consider his strategy of nonviolent resistance to cease racism and oppression. Throughout his piece, Dr. King uses many strong connections to biblical theologians and philosophers that strengthen his appeal and credibility.

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These directives targeted African Americans in order to, “preserve segregation and to deny citizens the First Amendment privilege of peaceful assembly and peaceful protest” (p.15). Although it would resolve one group's concerns, it would alienate and discriminate another group's rights. When the white community didn’t agree with the actions of the black community they would use the law to their advantage as it was unjust and favored them. Dr. King wanted African Americans who were protesting to know that what they were doing was appropriate under an unjust law. To do this he used a common ground that both communities shared, as a result he used Christianity.

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The “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King Jr. is about the unfair, brutal, and racist treatment the black community has been receiving from white people. This letter was written when he was arrested after peacefully protesting about segregation and how the black people didn’t agree with the law. In the letter, Martin Luther King Jr.’s feelings are being expressed toward the unfair events and it is an example of a well-written argument. In the letter are three claims pointed from King, it states he has a valid reason for being in Birmingham, the black community has no alternative, but to demonstrate and the need for justice is urgent. Also, it discusses king’s intentions during the civil rights movements.

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“Letter from Jail” On April 16, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a letter to the eight clergymen while he was incarcerated. Dr. King wrote this letter to address one of the biggest issues in Birmingham, Alabama and other areas within the United States. The “Letter from Birmingham Jail” discussed the great injustices that were happening during that time towards the black community. Dr. King wanted everyone to have the same equal rights as the white community, he also went into further details about the struggles that African Americans were going through for so many years, which he felt like it could change. Martin Luther King Jr’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, expressed his beliefs and his actions about the Human Rights Movement.

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King was the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which was located and enforced in every state in the South. This was an organization for African American civil rights. “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” (Page 204) King establishes that when the world opens their eyes into reality and realizes the inequality, there will be a greater problem than before. An increase in protestors, means the greater retaliation will be against the law and when there’s retaliation against the law, then people with justice are afraid.

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Injustices in Birmingham While sitting in the Birmingham jail in 1963, Martin Luther King Jr., writes a powerful and emotional letter to the clergymen of Birmingham. In his letter, he responds to the harsh criticism and injustices he received for simply protesting peacefully without a permit. King states in his letter, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.

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In the Crito by Plato, Socrates argues against civil disobedience, seeing it as an unjust act. Contrasting this view, Martin Luther King argues for civil disobedience against unjust laws, and seeing it as a responsibility of citizens. Civil disobedience is the active refusal to obey certain law, commands or requests of the government. I will argue that the view of Socrates is superior to the view of Martin Luther King on the justness of civil disobedience. Using the argument against harm, I will show that even if a law is viewed as unjust, you must not repay an evil with another evil, as evident in the Crito while contrary to ideas presented by MLK.

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In the end, both of them succeeded and the use of civil disobedience was in fact effective. A more recent example of civil disobedience in history is the protesters of the Keystone XL pipeline. There is a scene in the “Reject and Protect” video of a man speaking in front of a crowd holding a banner. He is using his voice to get his strong message through to others instead of using violence. If more people join their protest, the more likely it is that they will succeed because the president will see that an extreme amount of people are unhappy with the idea of the pipeline.

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Education in poverty-stricken areas is a luxury that many people do not receive and has always been a fight from the beginning of Mississippi’s historical roots. The battle for adequate education began over the issue of segregation and continues to hinder teens’ ability to learn. One of the reasons that education is unsatisfactory in many parts of Mississippi is because education and poverty are interrelated. Poverty has a negative impact on the student’s achievements and academic success and puts them at disadvantages for their futures. Although Mississippi is notorious for its major issues, the correlation of poverty and education have persisted as some of the most pressing issues that require immediate attention.

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Civil Disobedience is known as breaking the law because you don 't agree with a certain law or have a peaceful protest about that law or what you believe in. An example would be when Mahatma Gandhi walked miles to the Indian ocean as the citizens gathered more and more to fight for there Indian Independence. This occasion was called the Salt March. The reason for The Salt March was a March were all the citizens from India walked with gandhi to fight back for their Independence from the British, since it was taken away from the British.

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