Nonviolent Protest Essay

The fight for civil rights first began during America’s early existence. Until the 1950s and 1960s, political and social freedoms didn’t exist for all people. Certain groups of people didn’t receive the same freedoms as the rich and privileged. The Civil Rights movement pushed to create equal opportunities for all, regardless of gender, age, and skin color. The movements created a lot of speculation amongst US citizens because of particular actions taken by protestors. While some argued violent protests were deemed most beneficial, non-violent protests have been proven to be the most helpful. The effectiveness and lasting impact of non-violent protests can be seen in Jackie Robinson breaking baseball’s color barrier, the letter from Birmingham

Martin Luther King Jr. in 1963, is widely recognized as a powerful and persuasive example of nonviolent protest. In the letter, Dr. King explains his commitment to nonviolent protest to achieve social change. Dr. King says that nonviolent protests are morally just and also effective in overcoming unjust laws and corrupt systems. Dr. King said this in his letter from Birmingham Jail as an address toward making morally just laws and systems by taking non-violent actions. “So I have tried to make it clear that it is wrong to use immoral means to attain moral ends. But now I must affirm that it is just as wrong, or even more, to use moral means to preserve immoral ends.” Dr. King is telling people that it is wrong for an individual to resort to violence in order to achieve their end goal. To go along with this, Dr. King also says that acts of nonviolence to keep immoral laws are also unjust. Dr. King's statement can be compared to the Birmingham Police using the moral end of nonviolence to maintain the evil ends of racial

King referenced Saint Thomas Aquinas many times in his work, including Aquinas's concept of natural laws and just and unjust laws. Saint Thomas Aquinas had an idea about natural laws that argued that nonviolent resistance was morally justifiable and also the most effective way of achieving lasting social change. Saint Thomas Aquinas simply said, “good is to be done and evil is to be avoided.” While just a simple concept, MLK Jr. applied this to his letter from Birmingham Jail to address segregation laws in the United States. He argued that they are unjust because they violated the moral laws of equality and righteousness. Dr. King saw nonviolence as a way to appeal to the government, leading them to recognize the injustice of their actions and change their ways of thinking. Dr. King looked to many mentors in his life, as it helped him complete his letter from Birmingham Jail. The letter was beneficial in several ways as it helped to inspire and unify the civil rights movement by providing a clear and compelling argument for nonviolent protest. In addition, the letter provided a powerful example of how nonviolent resistance could be used to create positive change around the