The topic I choose to talk about is Martin Luther King Jr. because of his strong wisdom and bravery. I really admire Martin Luther King’s way of handling things in life because when he was no longer allowed to play with his friends at an young age and also when he was sent to jail for leading a march through Birmingham he was always peaceful about things. The way he chose to look at people who disrespected him and his race was amazing because many people couldn’t do something like that. He showed the world that you didn’t have to condone in violence for you to get your point across or if you’re not treated fairly. Why does the world see Martin Luther King as the most valued American? The reason why I think he is so valuable is because he focused …show more content…
King is valuable to America is because when the South was segregated he came up with a solution to try to improve this matter. He didn’t only speak for blacks; he spoke for everyone that was not treated equal as an American citizen. He always had the knowledge ever since he was younger, he was the top in his class at Crozer, and he even dressed appropriately daily. In addition, he enjoyed talking in front of people; when he was 14 years old, him and his teacher traveled to a competition where he gave a speech called “The Negro and the Constitution”. He learned this non-hatred attitude from his father Martin Luther King Sr. or often called “Big Daddy” who was a Baptist minister at the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. One day his father decided to get Jr. some new shoes from the store, but he never received them because his father left the store because the owner wouldn’t sell him the shoes in the front and the owner told “Big Daddy” the only way he could purchase them was if he went to the back. When someone came and bombed his house with his family still inside he didn’t have rage or any anger towards the bombers, he just continued what he was …show more content…
King and others got treated during this time. The Jim Crow laws basically said that these acts were okay and they were strict laws in the South, whites didn’t want blacks to have any power. Dr. King made speeches in the South and everywhere to influence people that these were wrong doings towards the black society and U.S. citizens. Even though whites seen blacks as lazy and dumb, Dr. King proved them wrong because all his speeches and had a message to it. When Eugene “Bull” Connor ordered the fire department to turn high power hose on the blacks and have them attacked by dogs; the blacks never gave up. Reporters videotaped this horrible tragic and when the nation seen this they were furious; that’s when the ears of the Americans began to
King was arguably the most important voice of the Civil Rights Movement , which worked for equal rights of all. He used nonviolent resistance to overcome justice, and fought to end segregation laws. He also done all he could to make people realise that all men are created equally. These remarkable outcomes emanated from the actions of Rosa parkes. It’s incredible that a single human being inspired some of the greatest people, and achievements in Civil rights history.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was one of the greatest civil rights leaders to ever live. Through his empowering speeches, he made a huge impact on the world for the equality of all races. Throughout King’s life, he showed everyone how he believed equality should be acquired. With his peaceful protests and amazing speeches, he influenced people both during his time and after he passed. Many believe that King’s work in the Civil Rights Movement was the final push that America needed to finally respect people no matter their skin color.
Martin Luther King's contributions to our history place him in this inimitable position. In his short life, Martin Luther King was instrumental in helping us realize and rectify those unspeakable flaws which were tarnishing the name of America. The events which took place in and around his life were earth shattering, for they represented an America which was hostile and quite different from America as we see it today.
People do not acknowledge the struggles that African Americans had to endure for them to be treated equally, the way a true American is supposed to be treated. One of the ways they were not treated equally was by not being able to participate in sports with whites. From the beginning of our nation, colored people were highly disrespected and treated as if they were some type of animals, which have no say in what happens to them. They were not given any opportunities and were treated harshly because their skin color was different. Whites were able to practically do anything they wanted, unlike blacks, who were racially discriminated or beaten for no apparent reason. African Americans were among the worst treated races in the US; however, this did not stop them from fighting for the rights that so many had died for. It seemed as if black people would never be treated respectfully, but just like in comic books, there is always a hero that will fight for his people. This hero soon came to the scene and he was fierce enough to change the lives of many people. Most importantly, he broke the color barrier and created a path that would allow others to follow. However, something that was inevitable was the threats and racial remarks they had to face.
"You may well ask, Why direct action? Why sit-ins, marches, etc.? Isn't negotiation a better path?' You are exactly right in your call for negotiation. Indeed, this is the purpose of direct action. Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and establish such creative tension that a community that has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored. I just referred to the creation of tension as a part of the work of the nonviolent resister. This may sound rather shocking. But I must confess that I am not afraid of the word tension. I have earnestly worked and preached against violent tension, but there is a type of constructive nonviolent tension that is necessary for growth. Just as Socrates felt that it was necessary to create a tension in the mind so that individuals could rise from the bondage of myths and half-truths to the unfettered realm of creative analysis and objective appraisal, we must see the need of having nonviolent gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will help men to rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood. So the purpose of the direct action is to create a situation so crisis-packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation. We, therefore, concur with you in your call for negotiation. Too long has our beloved Southland been bogged down in the tragic attempt to live in a monologue rather than a dialogue" (King 474-475)
Dr. King is a man who is overflowing with nothing but creditability. Not once did he point his finger as a child and blame the Caucasian men for forcing the African-American to attempt to survive a horrific ordeal of history. He encouraged his brothers and sisters of color not to protest with bitter and physical violence but to engage hands and peacefully demand to be treated equally. He encouraged his colored brothers and sisters to go back to where they are from, not with despair in their hearts, but hope that one day there will be freedom within reach.
African Americans had been struggling to obtain equal rights for scores of decades. During the 1960’s, the civil rights movement intensified and the civil rights leaders entreated President Kennedy to intervene. They knew it would take extreme legislature to get results of any merit. Kennedy was afraid to move forward in the civil rights battle, so a young preacher named Martin Luther King began a campaign of nonviolent marches and sit-ins and pray-ins in Birmingham, Alabama to try and force a crisis that the President would have to acknowledge. Eventually things became heated and Police Commissioner Eugene “Bull” Connor released his men to attack the protesters, which included many schoolchildren. All of this was captured and televised to the horror of the world. Finally this forced the President into action and he proposed a bill outlawing segregation in public facilities. The bill became bogged down in Congress but civil righ...
Can you envision what it would have been like to be an African American in the city of Birmingham in the year 1963? Strolling down the sidewalk in the middle of town, you suddenly get that feeling where eyes from all direction are staring right through you, making you feel uncomfortable in your own skin. Seeing signs on every restaurant and store window, criticizing you by the color of your skin. When you and your family go on a countryside cruise and it is better to just sleep in your car, rather than trying to find a hotel that accepts you. Having to answer your children's questions about the segregation issue and tell them they are equal whether they are treated so or not( King 2). Martin Luther King, Jr. acted upon all of these instances with multiple nonviolent protests. King was thrown into a musty, jail cell for one
King traveled the country making speeches and inspiring people to become involved in the Civil Rights Movement. He organized non-violent student sit-ins and fought for the rights of the black population. In his speech, he proclaimed a free and better nation of equality and that both races, the blacks and the whites, should join together to achieve common ground and to support each other instead of fighting against one another. King’s vision is that all people should be judged by their “personality and character and not by their color of skin”(‘I Have a Dream”). All the points he made in his speech were so strong that lots of people were interested in his thoughts. He dreamed of a land where the blacks could vote and have a reason to vote and where every citizen would be treated the same and with the same justice.
Dr. King was a very influential speaker. His speech stands out as one of the most powerful in all history, because it echoed the words of the Constitution, the Bible, Abraham Lincoln, and the National Anthem. The most famous part of his speech wasn’t even planned. He started talking about his dream, because a woman in the crowd told him to “tell them about the dream,” and he did. Dr. King had the most remembered speech, because he was willing to go off
One of the world’s best known advocates of non-violent social change strategies, Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK), synthesized ideals drawn from many different cultural traditions. Recent studies of him emphasize the extent to which his ideals were rooted in African-American religious traditions which were then shaped by his education. The image of a social activist and leader was the result of extensive formal education, strong personal values and licit ethics. This excellence in leadership can be traced to his character which is shaped by his moral values and personality. We look at MLK and these traits to reveal the rationalization of his rise to transracial leadership in our society. Through studying the life and example of Martin Luther King, Jr., we learn that his moral values of integrity, love, truth, fairness, caring, non-violence, achievement and peace were what motivated him. King is not great because he is well known, he is great because he served as the cause of peace and justice for all humans. King is remembered for his humanity, leadership and his love of his fellow man regardless of skin color. This presence of strong moral values developed King’s character which enabled him to become one of the most influential leaders of our time. Integrity is a central value in a leader’s character and it is through integrity that King had vision of the truth. The truth that one day this nation would live up to the creed, "all men are created equal". No man contributed more to the great progress of blacks during the 1950’s and 1960’s than Martin Luther King, Jr. He was brought up believing "one man can make a difference", and this is just what he did. Integrity has a large effect on what we think, say and do, it is through King’s thoughts and actions that enabled so many people to have trust and faith in him. Through King’s integrity he believed that America, the most powerful and richest nation in the world will lead the way to a revolution of values. This revolution will change the way society views itself, shifting from a "thing-orientated" society to a "person-orientated" society. When this occurs, King believed that racism will be capable of being conquered and this nation will be "Free at last." King’s unconditional love for all humans was another value that strongly influenced his character and allowed him to have such excellent leadership ability.
Americans needed Martin Luther King Jr., but above all, America needed him. With his constant pursuit for equality, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. helped bridge the gap between African Americans and whites. His nonviolent methods of protest helped create an awareness of the inequalities that African Americans had to endure. King helped America realize that it needed to change in order to truly prosper. Martin Luther King had the best philosophy for riding America of segregation, he used nonviolent methods to get Americans to realize that segregation needed to be stopped and he united both African Americans and whites together to fight for equality and a better nation.
For additional help in understanding his reasoning and thought processes, The Autobiography of Martin Luther King Jr., edited by Clayborne Carson, can give one a sense of exactly why King had such a strong religious background. In fact, the first words of the writing state “Of course I was religious. I grew up in the church. My father was a preacher, my grandfather was a preacher, my great-grandfather was a preacher, my only brother is a preacher, my daddy’s brother is a preacher. So of course I didn’t have much choice” (Carson 1). Furthermore, this work is special because it combines hundreds of King’s writings in order to make a first person narrative of his life. The book skips no part of his life and includes his thoughts and feelings
King has shaped the united states on the topic of segregation and racism. Without king, we would have a lot more hate than we do currently. Martin Luther King expressed his concerns, feelings, and outlooks to people who watch his speeches. His speeches made people realize that the hate they are spreading is pointless. He marched with his follower’s multiple times and went through horrendous conditions to make the world a better place for people to come. Martin Luther King Junior used his opinions, thoughts, viewpoints, his many followers and his relationship with God to make a nation-wide statement against racism. Martin Luther King Junior put his life on the line to help his children, friends, family, community, and his country. He created the first sense of diversity in our country.
The year of 1963, a famous leader gave his speech about his own opinion in front of 250 thousand people. Martin Luther King Jr. became a leader for many black lives. Martin Luther King Jr. fought for civil rights for everyone can be equal. He is also a very brave man who became a role model to most people. Martin Luther King Jr. also fought for peace for everyone can have better lives without feeling they can do anything just because they are a certain color. Martin Luther King Jr. is a brave leader who helped the world by fighting for civil rights, peace, and by becoming a role model.