As a child, I had known my fair share of discrimination. It became abundantly clear to me when I was introduced to Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech that I was not the only one, or the first one to be discriminated against. I remember completing an assignment regarding Dr. King’s speech, but I didn’t grasp the depth at which he wrote and the importance of his speech until now. At a time of turmoil and disunity, Dr. Martin Luther King’s speech was able to bring people together to protest for the equal rights of the African American people by appealing to the audience’s religious beliefs, attributing equality to nature, and unifying members of the audience together.
Using faith and religion, Martin Luther King makes the audience
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Martin Luther King aims to join the members in the audience together with his speech. Proclaiming that “black men as well as white men” should be given fundamental rights, Dr.King makes sure to include Caucasians in his speech, instead of antagonizing the white population, which allows the white population to feel that they are a part of Dr. King’s speech (1). Since the Caucasians are the ones with the power and supremacy in society, he knows to incorporate them so that their movement and protest will be successful. This also shows how even if he is upset with the majority of the white population, he knows to include them so that they are allies and helpful rather than enemies of the cause. By including the privileged population, he also is able to unify the black population with the Caucasians as seen when he states that their “white brothers… realize their destiny is tied up with our destiny” (King 3). By calling the white population as “brothers,” he makes the audience feel interconnected at a familial level. He also mentions that their destinies are related with one another, which makes the white people feel that giving the rights to the African Americans will also benefit the white population, as well. This creates a trust and reliance between the African Americans and …show more content…
After Dr. Martin Luther King’s speech, African-Americans were able to obtain equal rights. Though African Americans were given equal rights, they are still far from being truly equal to their Caucasian friends. Years later, the black population still faces discrimination, which is evident in the recent acts of police brutality in America, which raised many protests across the country. This image is similar to that of the time of Martin Luther King’s era, suggesting a repeat of history. Dr. King mentioned that he will not be satisfied until African Americans are no longer the victim of discrimination and police brutality, but in today’s world, the black population is still subjected to this, so even years after his death, Martin Luther King is still not
Martin Luther King Jr’s Dream has said to have been fulfilled. However, others claim that the dream has only been taken at face value, thus, misunderstood. In John McWhorter’s article, “Black People Should Stop Expecting White America to ‘Wake Up’ to Racism,” he refers to past and recent events to establish the difference between society’s fantasy and the misinterpreted Dream of Dr. King.
Achieving Racial Equality On April 12th, 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. was leading a peaceful protest in the city of Birmingham, Alabama that resulted in him being arrested and jailed. Later that day, eight clergymen responded with the statement “A Call For Unity” in The Birmingham News requesting he ends all of his protests. A few days later, King created a response to the statement in the form of an open letter. In this letter, Martin Luther King Jr. develops a well-proposed argument in response to the eight clergymen who published the statement. Throughout the letter, King uses rhetorical appeal in order to give the viewer a sense of King’s credibility, his emotions, and also his logic on why he does what he does.
Martin Luther King believed in integration, he believed that everyone, blacks and whites should live and work together as equals. ‘I have a dream that … one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.' He held hope that one day black and white Americans would be united as one nation. This approach was crucial for engaging the white community. King was best able to expres...
The author of the “I Have A Dream” speech is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. King, known for his work in Civil Rights during the 1960s. In this informative speech, Dr. King inspires individuals to have a change in both white and black citizens during the Civil RIghts era in the United States. Moreover, the premise of the speech is that both sides of the discussion must accept change in a non-violent yet effective way. He spoke about the injustices of segregation and discrimination of black citizens that was occurring in our nation. As he opened, “I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation,” he explained what he was there to do for all citizens. He is
Whenever Martin Luther King Junior, began to speak, he held everybody’s attention. This was the case in 1963 during the pinnacle of the Civil Rights Movement when Martin gave his career defining speech “I Have a Dream”. Over a quarter million people attended the protest, and the crowd varied in color as well as cause. A crowd of this size would certainly frighten most people; but Martin was not the type of man to be phased easily. Martin grew up on the racist streets of Atlanta, Georgia and faced much adversity in his life. Not even thirty-five Martin would give a speech that would shake an embroiled nation to its core. Martin Luther King Junior gave a speech to beautifully wove together the three appeals of ethos, logos, and pathos into one
On August 28, 1963, the legendary Martin Luther King Jr. gave his empowering speech, demanding equality among the African American and white race, and the injustices that have proved the conditions unequal between the two races. In his speech, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. uses many rhetorical devices to convey the idea that whites have brutally mistreated blacks for hundreds of years, even though, as a group, they have paved the nation, laying the foreground of the United States.
The Civil Rights Movement in the 1950’s and 1960’s was a mass mobilization and unification of people from varying backgrounds fighting for equal rights and equal opportunity for Black Americans. Black male leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. preached about equality and challenged people to consider social injustices within society. The leadership qualities and influence of Dr. King are undeniable. His rhetoric united Black America and identified their entitlement to the principles embodied in the Declaration of Independence and Constitution. Dr. King’s inspiring speech for Black’s to “one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character”, motivated White and Black
King peacefully pleads for racial tolerance and the end of segregation by appealing to the better side of white Americans. His attempt to persuade America about the justice of his cause, and to gain support for the civil rights movement was emotionally moving. He spoke to all races, but his rhetoric was patriotic, and culturally similar to, and focused on African-Americans. He was able to make practical use of a history many Americans are proud of. The use of repetition reinforced his words making it simpler and more straightforward to follow. His speech remains powerful because it is still relevant today, like economic injustices and stereotyping. This reading can be applied to remedying current issues of stereotyping, racism, and discrimination by changing white racial resentment and eliminating racial
The 20th century was a definitive time period for the Black civil rights movement. An era where the status quo was blatant hatred and oppression of African Americans, a time when a black son would watch his father suffer the indignity of being called a “boy” by a young white kid and say nothing in reply but “yes sir”. Where a Black person can be whipped or lynched for anything as little as not getting off the sidewalk when approaching a white person, for looking into their eyes, or worse, “for committing the unpardonable crime of attempting to vote.” In the midst of the racial crises and fight for social equality were Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. who despite their difference in philosophies were “icons of social justice movement both in the United States and around the world” .
Nearly three centuries ago, black men and women from Africa were brought to America and put into slavery. They were treated more cruelly in the United States than in any other country that had practiced slavery. African Americans didn’t gain their freedom until after the Civil War, nearly one-hundred years later. Even though African Americans were freed and the constitution was amended to guarantee racial equality, they were still not treated the same as whites and were thought of as second class citizens. One man had the right idea on how to change America, Martin Luther King Jr. had the best philosophy for advancing civil rights, he preached nonviolence to express the need for change in America and he united both African Americans and whites together to fight for economic and social equality.
For example, whites had sympathy for African Americans and parents had sympathy for their children. The way that King tells his speech takes the focus off of race and reestablishes it on the aspiration of a world without racism. “.by making his audience no longer hate Negroes and instead hate racism and wish for a new, better world.” (L., Anson). Dr. King made the audience sympathize with African Americans, helping the audience realize that racist people and biased ideas caused the true dilemma of discrimination.
King said, “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, the all men are created equal.” Probably white people didn’t like this, but I’m sure mostly all black people liked this idea. King had campaigns to get this great idea a big hit. It soon led that all blacks have the same rights as whites.
Whenever people discuss race relations today and the effect of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, they remember the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He was and continues to be one of the most i...
Overall, Martin Luther King’s purpose of this speech was to unite African Americans and Caucasians to fight together for the same cause, equal rights for all people no matter the color of their skin. To successfully convey this purpose, King employed several tools of persuasion in his speech. He did indeed present an example of what could qualify as the "greatest demonstration" of arguments for true freedom for all Americans. He employed the techniques of ethos, pathos and logos with such skill that his audience likely was only aware of a single steering man towards a national unity.
There once was a speech made, from a man who was admired and looked up too by many people. His name was Martin Luther King and he had stood up for his own race. Back then “King was arrested, [had] his home bombed, subjected to personal abuse, but at the same time he emerged as a leader for the first rank of blacks” (Life Books). With this in mind, it has showed us that Martin Luther King was a leader for most people. He had wanted everyone to have equal rights and ...