Violence In King's 'The Ballot Or The Bullet'

Violence has been a highly controversial topic in philosophical debate. There has been extensive debate about the concept of violence such as what is violence, what constitutes as violence, and what is the appropriate response to violence. Despite the extensive debate, the concept of violence is still unclear; there is no universal concept or idea for violence. This paper will address the concern about what is the appropriate response to violence.

The present account will do the following: (1) analyze a passage from Martin Luther King, Junior’s “Letter from Birmingham,” (2) compare King’s argument to Malcolm X’s “The Ballot or the Bullet,” and (3) express a position in relation to these two arguments. In order to preserve as much of the author’s

He declares that such condition ought to be changed and calls for the African American communities “to stop singing and start swinging” (p. 3). In doing so, he embraces a confrontational approach with his endorsement of Black Nationalism (which is the idea that the black community should be the one in charge of their politics and economy) in the face of injustice and racial inequality. He claims that it is imperative that the African American communities be (more) active in the fight for freedom, because the only way to end the oppression by the white nationalism is to fight against the white nationalist government. He proposes a re-education on the political system and the economy in the black communities for the purpose of becoming informed about the options available to them and the possible consequences resulting from those options. Being educated would allow African Americans to be aware that they have the opportunity to make a difference with their voting—“It’ll be the ballot or it’ll be the bullet. It’ll be liberty or it’ll be