Words have the power to inspire, provoke, and calm people both physically and mentally. This fact is evident through various historical events throughout the Civil Rights period, specifically when racial rights were being fought for. “The Letter to Birmingham Jail”, The “I Have a Dream” Speech, and the children's crusade, recounted in the “The Year that Changed Everything” text, all show how powerful words are. Whether through inspiration, provocation, or calming, these texts show that words can do these things mentally and physically. The Letter from Birmingham Jail snowballed and provoked an entire nation. In this letter, Martin Luther King Jr states, “I hope this letter finds you strong in the faith. I also hope that circumstances will soon make it possible for me to meet each of you, not as an intergrationist or a civil-rights leader but as a fellow clergyman and a Christian brother.” This statement shows that the letter was addressed to the clergyman and …show more content…
In “The Year that Changed everything” text, it says that “On the seventh day of the Children’s Crusade, city officials agreed to negotiate with the African American community. A few days later, the two sides reached an agreement to end local segregation.” The brave children's protest calmed tensions between city officials and the African American community and allowed negotiations that ended local segregation. This shows that actions can both provoke and calm, but what about words? Martin Luther Kings “I have a Dream” Speech calmed black communities, as much as the children's crusade. When MLK said “I have a dream…” in his speech, it calmed black communities because it made them feel like there were powerful people making changes, it made them feel like there was hope for their children to live in a non-racist society> even though we haven’t gotten there yet, we’ve made progress, and Martin's dream is slowly but surely coming