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The Letter From Birmingham Jail By Martin Luther King Jr.

1766 Words8 Pages

The civil rights movement was the answer to a call for justice that transformed the world. Though in the seemingly distant past, the social and economic implications of Jim Crow era racism once deep-rooted in the nation were only a few decades ago. “The Letter from Birmingham Jail” stands as one of the most influential and potent historical documents of the civil rights movement. In his response to the “Public Statement” written by the eight white clergymen from Birmingham who criticized the demonstrations led by King. Martin Luther King Jr. not only addresses the concerns raised in the clergy's letter regarding Birmingham but also highlights the larger issues of institutionalized segregation facing the nation at large by appealing to an American …show more content…

King explains, “When you find your tongue stammering as you seek to explains to your six year old daughter that she cannot go to the public amusement park advertised on TV because it is not open to African Americans.” King also recounts, “or when your five year old son asks, ‘Why do white people treat colored people so poorly.’ King emphasizes how the idea of “white superiority” means to blacks, as he say, ”your middle name becomes boy (no matter how old you are) and your wife and mother are never given the respectful title Mrs. In all instances, King it appealing to the emotional, pathos, of the nation as a whole, by including personal anecdotes that anyone can relate to. King also uses Biblical references and popular examples to connect with the audience. In similar ways, others in history have had to fight for their people’s independence, freedom, and stand up for what it right. King draws from Biblical examples, retelling the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who disobeyed the laws of Nebuchadnezzar in order to stand up for what they believed what right -- obeying their God. Similar in American Patriotism, early Americans rebelled against what was unjust. The Boston Tea Party was a massive representation of civil disobedience. Center to the actions of the Boston Tea Party were because of “taxation without representation.” While King does not directly draw conclusion to this, similar motivation existed with the colored community. Not only were civil ordinances used to decrease colored rights, but no representation existed. King also clarifies unjust and justice laws. King urges his audience to remember that the horrendous actions taken against Jewish people during World War II by Hitler Germany was deemed

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King acknowledges that, "In our own nation, the Boston Tea Party represented a massive act of civil disobedience." He justified the act of civil disobedience by comparing the Boston Tea Party to the civil rights movement. He also uses rhetorical devices such as imagery and biblical allusions to further show how the world has violated their civil rights. King also gives an example of, "We should never forget everything Adolf Hitler did in Germany was "legal" and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was "illegal", which he is trying to say that just because it was legal or illegal does not make it right or wrong. To conclude Martin Luther King's "Letter to Birmingham Jail", he ends off his letter stating, "Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear drenched communities..." which explains him asking them to bring his letter to their hearts to change the racial prejudice everyone born in the United States will have civil rights.

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In his letter Letter from Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King Jr. sought to elaborate on the criticism that eight fellow clergymen had about his work and ideas. The letter was written when King was imprisoned in a Birmingham city jail cell for parading without permit. King was a prominent leader of the African-American civil rights movement, “Nobel Peace Prize” recipient(Fairclough, 1995, p.1), and served as the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. A close analysis of King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail revealed that clarifying the criticism of African-American civil rights movement was not the only purpose of King.

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Dr King explains that just laws making an individual to believe that it is right to do, but it is affecting those individual who are believing it. Just laws shows the face of laws but it does not apply in the society. Dr king contribute by creating awareness among people and putting a clear picture to the real applications and making it visible to black community. He clearfield the difference between laws implications in the society, how African Americans are treated badly, eventhough they are protected by laws. In real theory, they are called as an outsider, and he shows the clear distinction between exclusion and inclusion though an individual is living in the United

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King compels his audience to either compromise between their indifference and their patriotism for the nation or to conflict with the values and morals that they live by. He makes a straightforward connection to how ending segregation will be for the benefit of the country by indicating that if they do not solve the problems segregation brings as soon as possible, then the United States will eventually be caught and surpassed by countries that are supposedly far behind them. King also introduces the thought that the people accusing his actions of being untimely are not highly knowledgeable or fully aware of the severity of what they are fighting for. Through this, the audience easily comprehends that he is not just acting upon his personal goals, rather he is acting upon what he feels will be for the betterment of the nation. On top of this, the audience can also understand or infer that segregation may be worse than previously imagined.

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Throughout King’s letter, he incorporated different rhetorical appeals, such as pathos, to make the audience understand the harsh treatment African Americans were subjected to each day. In his letter King emphasized, “But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim; when you have seen hate filled policemen curse, kick, and even kill your black brothers and sisters; when see the vast majority of your twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society... (King 3).” This piece of evidence describes the brutality that was

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In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. led a peaceful movement in Birmingham, Alabama. The purpose of the demonstration was to bring awareness and end to racial disparity in Birmingham. Later that night, King and his followers were detained by city authorities. While in custody, King wrote the famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” This letter voiced out his disappointment in the criticisms, and oppositions that the general public and clergy peers obtained.

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By stating who he is, King lets the reader know that his voice matters when it comes to responding to the clergymen. And as a result, he has the ability to gain the trust of the reader which then allows them to be persuaded by what he has to say. Now as for pathos, King uses this appeal throughout his letter by giving examples of what it is like to be black. The example that stood out the most to me was when King writes, “when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your 6-year-old daughter why she can’t go to the public amusement park that has been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children” (79). King’s use of pathos in this quote targets the emotions of the reader by revealing how children face the injustices of segregation.

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Which relates to what he is saying about civil disobedience. Its wrong to punish people who aren't guilty of doing anything wrong. Hitler was doing things wrong, so King helping them shouldn't be illegal. So King wouldn't try to kill Hitler, but

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I believe that paragraphs 9 and 12 from Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” are the strongest paragraphs in this letter of his. These paragraph is so profound and truly explain why segregation is unjust in two short paragraphs. They don’t go into a lot of detail on why segregation is unjust, because they don’t need to. They’re argument is strong enough with how short they are. Since these paragraphs give an easy to understand and short reasoning as to why segregation is unjust, explains what makes a law just or unjust, and show that just laws can be unjust when applied to situations such as segregation, I believe they are the strongest paragraphs in this letter.

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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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Civil rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr, in his Letter from Birmingham City Jail, argues against criticism from eight Alabama clergymen, and addresses their concerns. He defends his position, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), against accusations of disturbing the peace in Birmingham, as well as explaining his values and opinions. Throughout the letter, King adopts a strong logical and credible tone, and reinforces his position through the use of strong emotional justifications, in order to appeal to the clergymen and defend his public image. Martin Luther King opens up his Letter from Birmingham City Jail by appealing to the clergymen's emotions, and assuring his peaceful response, which he describes in "patient and

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He states that African Americans did not experience the same rights of citizenship as other Americans. King also explains why African Americans had to protest. He said that the only way to spur change was to bring attention to it. Protesting does this and only then, will people see that change is needed.

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Martin Luther King Jr. made a decision to write back to the clergyman after they addressed him. Martin Luther King Jr. expressed his reasons why he fights for everyone 's rights because we all deserve to be equal and the clergyman did not see the reason why it was necessary for the King to act against the clergyman. King wrote a profound letter that must have influence everyone. King used pathos, logos, and ethos. Martin Luther King Jr. used various types of techniques to persuade the clergyman and the other critics, but the method that I believe that was the most effective convincing the audience was pathos.

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During the 1960s even though Blacks and White shared the same faith, they could not share the same church pew because of the racial barrier that was prevalent in that time between the two races. Churches have always been a safe place for Blacks and Whites to retreat to when needed, but they were never integrated. Blacks went to their churches, and Whites went to theirs. The church was one place where they could sit in peace surrounded by their fellow friends and family, and forget about the brutality happening right outside the doors. Since it was a safe haven the Blacks were not pushing for the churches to be integrated, and the Whites did not want their churches to be desegregated.

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He places the strong authority of the declaration on his side to show how the American people are in contradiction to their own “sacred obligation” and the Negros have gotten a “bad check.” A metaphor representing the unfulfilled promise of human rights for the African Americans. King skillfully evokes an emotional response from all races with the use of religion: “Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.” By doing this he finds a common ground that brings black and whites closer with a common belief in God they share, as well as the mention of

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