A Letter From Birmingham Jail By Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

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After being arrested in downtown Birmingham on a Good Friday, Reverend Martian Luther King Jr. wrote his famous letter, “A Letter From Birmingham Jail” responding to the criticism demonstrated by eight prominent white clergymen. This letter has been found important through out history because it expresses King’s feelings towards the un-just event and it is an example of a well-written argument. The author, Dr. Martian Luther King Jr., makes a statement “Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue.” He uses this concept to convey the point of the Negros hard work to negotiate the issue has failed, but now they must confront it. The March on Good Friday, 1963, 53 blacks, led by Reverend Martian Luther King, Jr., was his first physical protest to segregation laws that had taken place after several efforts to simply negotiate. The author uses several phrases that describe his nonviolent efforts and his devotion to the issue of segregation that makes the reader believe his how seriously King takes this issue. “Conversely, one has the moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.” Dr. Martian Luther King, Jr. explains with this that an “unjust law is no law at all.” King does not feel like he has broken any laws in his protest against segregation. In his eyes, laws are made to protect the people, not degrade and punish. “The Negro has many pent up resentments and latent frustrations, and he must release them. So let him March.” As far as King is concerned, the Negros will continue to do whatever is necessary, preferably non-violently, to obtain the moral and legal right that is theirs. If they are not allowe... ... middle of paper ... ...to jail. He was beaten and put down in jail, but he never gave up on his idea of God and never once regret they steps he took to spread the work of God, despite where he ended up. “Whether our dreams have been crushed by forces beyond our control – injustice, disaster, or the death of a love one – or we’ve shattered them ourselves through cowardice, poor judgment, moral laxity, or laziness, hope is not beyond us. Nor are we beyond hope – as long as we press on in Gods direction.” Dr. King uses this powerful statement along with several others like it to really get the point across that you need to fight for what you believe in and don’t lose hope. The process to gain desegregation of African-Americans and whites will be a fight, but they key is to follow in the line of God and keep moving forward, while pushing aside and stepping over any despair you may encounter.

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