Also, in his letter his tone was strong, but neither violent nor threatening towards the clergymen. Similarly, King portrays a sense of concern for the clergymen and they ways in which they are willing to obtain the peaceful ends they seek. He senses the still-present fear of the white community in the letter of complaints from the clergymen. King was offended by how the clergymen only planned on addressing the African American community for their actions while letting the whites go on with their violent and oppressive actions. Dr. King fought his whole career for equality amongst the races, meaning all communities with violent, racist actions should be addressed.
Jennifer Smith Prof Franco 3/26/2011 Engl 1213 Standing up One of the most known advocates for equality is Martin Luther King Jr. He’s had some of the most moving, convincing and change inducing speeches of all time. His “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is no exception. King wrote the letter from a Birmingham jail cell in April on 1963 following his arrest for public demonstration. In the beginning of the letter, King describes his reason for writing the letter as a response to the Clergymen’s statement calling his “present activities unwise and untimely. ” (King).
King Argument Analysis King masters the art of argument. King wrote “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, in response to a critical "Call For Unity" by a group of clergymen in Birmingham. The clergymen were critical of King for "interloping" in the affairs of their town. King's response was that he had every right to fight injustice in the country that he lived in. The letter King wrote, while in response to the "Call for Unity", was also a sort of declaration that he would fight racial inequality wherever it was.
Change I support Will Campbell’s statement, “I’m pro-Klansman because I’m prohuman being.” Will shows a change in religious, cultural, and racial position from before Jonathan Daniel’s death. From a young age on through his thirties, Will Campbell believes strongly in fighting for the Civil Rights Movement while neglecting the racist whites. However, after his friend Jonathan is murdered, he comes to the conclusion that everyone is a bastard, and God loves everyone, even the KKK and other racists. The change in religious beliefs allows his civil rights work to extend to white racists as well. He understands how they are children of God too.
Analysis of “I Have a Dream” and “Letter to Birmingham Jail” In the “Letter to Birmingham Jail” Martin Luther King addresses the criticisms and objections that the white clergymen had made towards his and his affiliated organization’s efforts in trying to end segregation and achieve his and his people’s birth right: the right to be free through nonviolent means. Through the “I Have a Dream Speech” King speaks to his supporters and as well as to the entire nation to make them be fully aware of the injustices they are facing and through this make them stand up to those injustices. Both “Letter to Birmingham Jail” and “I Have a Dream Speech” have the same underlying meaning however. That way too long have the black community been treated wrongly. That way too long have the black nation been “judged by the color of their skin rather than the content of their character (King 815)” and therefore it is time for them to rise and stand up for their rights.
He has given some of the greatest speeches, like “I Have a Dream” and many more. King use Thoreau and his ideas as an example to explain his acts and its importance for civil right movement, in his letter from Birmingham Jail. Even though King and Thoreau are from different time, they share the same thought about civil right and civil disobedience. Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther king Jr. both illustrate that civil disobedience is necessity if there is social injustice present in a society. Thoreau had idealistic thought about government system.
Martin Luther King and president Abraham Lincoln had some similarities, which lead Martin Luther King to agree yet disagree with his council. The thought as to how both Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King both thought that it would be tragic if an anarchy would establish; was key. Violence and the way one would reason with society was also another important aspect when it came to the council and Martin Luther King’s views in regards to the whole segregation and civil rights ordeal. Civil disobedience was King’s main point in his fight for rights of all colored people in the United States, which would allow convincing Lincoln’s beliefs that were necessary to secure order and perpetuate our institutions. The establishment of anarchy made everyone in any kind of society to be frightened, if they aren’t use to having some sort of public government.
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail" was addressed to his fellow clergymen, but he wanted the entire world to read it. King explains; what he was doing in Birmingham, why he believed they must not wait and try to exact change immediately, and what he planned to do to help bring it about. King was a firm advocate of peaceful actions as a means to attain social change. He was the leader of peaceful protests against the segregation of the “Negro” people in America. Mr. King does a great job of clarifying all of the reasons for his arguments, making them logical in their appeal, hard to deny, and supports them well.
Truong Pham 35476118 Comparison Essay Martin Luther King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail vs. Barack Obama’s “ A more Perfect Union” In their letter and speech, both Martin Luther King and Barack Obama tried to primarily use ethical and emotional appeals to raise awareness about racism in America and to persuade their respective audience to join their quest to put an end to racism. However, while Barack Obama talked about racism in general, Martin Luther King focussed on segregation, or racism specifically on African-American. King was straightforward in his arguments, often time hitting the nail right on the head, while Obama was much too diplomatic in his speech due to the fact that he had to appeal to a large audience of all
What is an unjust law? An unjust law according to Dr. King Jr. is one that “degrades human personality.” The clergy men, in their letter, urge the “Negro citizenry to observe the principles of law and order and common sense.” Addressing their argument Dr. Martin Luther King expresses his thoughts on the laws. He agrees with the clergymen, that laws are meant to be followed, but then goes on to say that just because something is a law does not mean that it is just. “For instance, I have been arrested on a charge of parading without a permit. Now, there is nothing wrong in having an ordinance which requires a permit for a parade.