Martin Luther King Just And Unjust Essay

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr wrote a letter to fellow clergymen after being arrested for civil disobedience in Birmingham, Alabama. I agree with his statements towards the differences between just and unjust laws. A just law is one that abides by the law of God and the moral law. An example of this is when the majority party puts a law into place and are willing to follow that law along with the minority. On contrary, an unjust law is not put into place for the sake of the majority and the minority. An unjust law seems unfair to the group that is least likely to be represented. These laws are not made for everyone that's why Dr. Martin Luther King didn't have a problem with breaking unjust laws because they were just that, unjust. Unjust means not behaving according to what is morally right and fair. He says that there is a difference between law, just and unjust and with morality (good and bad). Dr. King also says that it's

one thing to knowingly break laws but does not feel like one must obey unjust laws. He actually states that it's ones moral responsibility to disobey and obey unjust and just laws, respectively.
I agree fully to what he said in response to his actions being untimely. In my opinion, there is really never a perfect time to stand up against the oppressor. Dr. King stated that the Birmingham’s mayoral election was coming up in March, and they decided to postpone any further action until after the Election Day. I feel as though the longer we wait, the longer the results will take. On the other hand, I disagree with Dr. King’s argument about police and Negro recognition. Dr. King was too optimistic towards a lot of things as he stated but definitely towards this. I felt that he shouldn't have been expecting them to recognize the courage of the Negro sit inners. Even though everyone knew whether they admitted it or not, they knew that these people were very strong-minded, daring, and courageous for being nonviolent in their protests. They wanted equal rights and they were determined to get them. Dr. King led them, but he put too much faith into people who were against him. What he was doing was morally right and should have been recognized by many more back then. He was the civil rights leader but there were so many people against him. They were out abusing him and his followers when they would make their protest and Dr. King still had faith in them.
I disagree with his views towards the oppressors.

In the bible it does say that we must love our neighbor. Even if they do wrong to us, we must not do wrong in return. It says that even if you only do good to the people that do good to you, you are no better than your enemy. This is the only disagreement I have with Dr. King’s letter. His expectations were too high for them and he felt let down every time they didn't comply with what he thought. This to me is only hurting him emotionally. It’s better to set your expectations lower so that if they did anything positively towards his movement then that's a plus, but if they don't it’s not really a loss. This protects yourself emotionally and mentally. I guess that's why Dr. King is known for being persistent and actually brought results to segregation. He had these high expectations because he believed the things he was fighting for would one day happen. Our perspectives on recognition are different. I don't expect anyone to recognize me, if they do it’s a plus and if they don't it a not a

loss.
I can relate a few themes from this letter written in 1963 to a few current issues in society today. There has been numerous acts of violence in the black community. These include Trayvon Martin in Florida, Mike Brown in Ferguson, incidents in Cincinnati, and Baltimore. For instance, Trayvon Martin was a young African American male who went to the store wearing a black hood over his head, to buy skittles for his little sister. George Zimmerman, a Caucasian male called the police saying that he seen a suspicious boy (Trayvon) he never seen before, walking. The police told him not to follow Trayvon but he did anyways. In result of this, the two of them began to fight and George Zimmerman shot him three times in the back, killing him. He went to court and was later found not guilty. This is an example of racial profiling. Trayvon was assumed to be a threat to the community just because he was black with a hood on. There are many instances in the World today that relate to themes in this letter. In the past, African Americans were not giving the rights as U.S citizens as stated by Dr. King in many instances. Even today having accomplished marvels, there has still been many injustices taken place. This letter gives great insight to people and issues back in 1963. It shows the courage, determination, and perseverance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and his people.