Letter To Birmingham Jail Analysis

“This wait has almost always meant Never. We must come to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that justice too long delayed is justice denied." [Martin Luther King, Jr.]

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was arrested while leading a parade in Birmingham, Alabama, while attending a 1963 civil rights protest. Dr. King wrote, “A Letter from Birmingham Jail”, responding to a letter written by eight white Birmingham clergymen criticizing his involvement in demonstrations. Dr. King used his letter to answer why he came to Birmingham, Alabama. All though African-Americans were being oppressed throughout the South, no city showed the same levels of injustice found in Birmingham. Dr. King explained that he could not just sit in Atlanta, Georgia,

and do nothing. Dr. King’s letter used a passionate plea for clergymen to see the brutality being acted upon his fellow African-Americans, and emphasized a call for civility and justice. In his own words, Dr. King stated, “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” [King]
In an effort to establish a more personal relationship, Dr.

King used his knowledge of biblical scriptures to appeal to their sense of compassion. Dr. King compared his calling to help those in Birmingham to that of Apostle Paul. Dr. King, expressed that, “Apostle Paul left his village of Tarsus and carried the gospel of Jesus Christ to the far corners of the Greco Roman world…” [King] Including this example in his letter, Dr. King’s explanation for coming to Birmingham was to carry the “gospel of freedom” [King] just as Apostle Paul carried the gospel of Jesus Christ. In addition to Dr. King’s plea for compassion, a call for justice was needed. The level of brutality and the lack of civility occurring in Birmingham was a threat justice everyone. Dr. King reminded them that, “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” [King] Dr. King elaborated on this statement by explaining that all citizens of the United States are dependent upon one another. No one could act without impacting the lives of others. He further provided evidence to these injustices by expressing that “negroes have experienced grossly unjust treatment in the courts there and have been more unsolved bombings of Negro homes and churches.” [King] The widespread injustice was the sole reason for the civil rights protests. The only way to make those in power to take notice of these actions was to demonstrate. When the injustices were made visible, society would have no choice but to deal with the

underlying causes.
Dr. King used ethos in his letter by sharing his knowledge of the biblical scriptures to establish credibility, and to relate to their belief in the gospel of Jesus Christ. They were all men committed to the words of Jesus Christ, who taught his prophets to teach according to these words, “thus saith the Lord”. [King]
Dr. King acknowledged the clergymen’s call for negotiation rather than encouraging unrest, but explained that the “white power structure left the Negro community with no alternative.” [King] Dr. King reminded them that the Negro leaders had already tried to negotiate in good faith with the economic leaders of the community. There were many promises made, but merchants did not honor those promises. In fact, “Negros were forcefully removed from stores and further humiliated by racial slurs.” [King] Dr. King shared his deep disappointment with this situation, and felt that there was no alternative except for direct action.
Dr. King explained the purpose for taking direct action. These nonviolent actions create a tension within a community. When the level of tension becomes too big for the community to ignore, the leaders are forced to confront the underlying causes. So, when a community refuses to negotiate, direct action is required. Dr. King further expressed that, “We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.” [King] Dr. King said that the Negro was told too often to wait while they suffered under the effects of segregation. He explained that “wait has almost always meant never.” [King] He further elaborated that, “justice too long delayed is justice denied.” [King]
Dr. King used logos in his letter to appeal to their logic or reason. By explaining that negotiation had been tried in the past, but was not successful. A community of oppressors would not willingly give up their power structure willingly. Someone who had not felt the harm from segregation would find saying wait very easy. But his belief was that the only way the Negro was to receive justice, was for direct action to be taken. A nonviolent action with the intent to cause enough tension within the community, would force the leaders to address the causes.
Dr. King added personal experience to his letter and tried to appeal to their compassionate and tolerant sides. He shared his having to explain to his daughter why he could not take her to the public amusement part because Funtown is closed to colored children. He elaborated on his experience while driving across the country and having to sleep in the uncomfortable conditions of his automobile because there were no hotels that would accept him. Furthermore, a person is humiliated every day by seeing “signs read white and colored, when your first name becomes nigger, while your middle name becomes boy” [King]
Dr. King responded to their concerns regarding his willingness to disobey the laws. Their claims had questioned Dr. King’s actions stating that he advocated for breaking laws when he had a moral obligation to obey the laws. Dr. King responded with a quote by St. Augustine saying that “an unjust law is no law at all.” [King] Dr. King further explains that, “a just law is a manmade code that squares with moral law or the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with moral law.” [King]
Dr. King used pathos in his letter to try and persuade the clergymen that segregation was wrong by appealing to their emotions. Dr. King shared his life experiences and the struggles of a Negro in a segregated society. He expressed the “humiliation and the sense of nobodiness you feel when experiencing the resentments” [King]
Dr.

King explained that no society could live by laws without a moral code. Further, a law that degrades a human should be not be considered as just. Segregation is a law that should be considered an unjust law. Segregation is unjust because it “distorts the soul and damage the personality. It gives the segregator a false sense of superiority and the segregated a false sense of inferiority.” [King]

Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote his open letter to the clergymen of Birmingham, Alabama, after being arrested for leading nonviolent demonstrations in protest of the brutal and humiliating treatment of the Negro community. The clergymen had expressed their concerns with how Dr. King was disobeying the local laws and causing tension in the community. They communicated his moral obligation to follow just laws, and that negotiation was the proper method to achieve his purpose. Causing disorder in the community as not an acceptable way to achieve his purpose.

Dr. King used different approaches to reach the reasonableness of the clergymen. He used ethos by expressing his knowledge of theology to speak to their religious beliefs. He used logos by describing the teachings of St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas regarding the definition of just and moral laws, and compares to the unjustness of segregation. Dr. King used pathos by sharing his personal experience with segregation and the effects on a person’s personality. A just law does not degrade or humiliate a

person.
The letter by Dr. King is just as applicable today as it was in 1963. All though the laws may have changed, much of the attitudes still exist. The African-American community continues with the struggle for equality whether it’s for voting rights, economics, or legal protection.
Dr. King left us with his vision from his “I Have a Dream” speech. He saw a place where all men were judged by the content of their character and not by the color of their skin. The United States has come a long way since the days of the Jim Crow Laws, but a lot more work has yet to be done.