Letter From A Birmingham Jail

"Letter from a Birmingham Jail” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin W. Gambichler

Dr. King
(January 15, 1929-April 4, 1968)
Born in Atlanta Georgia
Was born Michael Luther King, Jr., but later had his name changed to Martin
Dr. King was in a legacy of pastors, his grandfather, father and him all served the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, from 1914 to 1960 after Kings death

Legacy
King's is an icon to Americas Civil Rights Movement
He led the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott
King's efforts led to the 1963 March on Washington, where King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech.

History-Movements
In 1954, Martin Luther King became pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama
Being as strong worker for civil rights, King was, by this time, a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
In December, 1955 he accepted leadership of the first great Negro nonviolentdemonstration of contemporary times in the United States, the bus boycott
The boycott lasted 382 days
His home was bombed, put in jail and held to days of to personal abuse, but at the same time he emerged as a Negro leader

History-Movements contd.
King traveled over six million miles and spoke over twenty-five hundred times, appearing wherever there was injustice, protest, and action
He led a massive protest in Birmingham, Alabama, inspiring his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail"
planned the drives in Alabama for the registration of Negroes as voters
directed the peaceful march on Washington, D.C., of 250,000 people to whom he delivered his address "l Have a Dream",
he conferred with President John F. Kennedy and campaigned for President Lyndon B. Johnson
was arrested upwards of twenty times and assaulted at least four times
he was awarded five honorary degrees and was named Man of the Year by Time magazine in 1963

Document
On Good Friday in 1963, 53 blacks, led by Rev. King, marched into downtown Birmingham to protest the existing segregation laws.
All were arrested. This caused the clergymen of this Southern town to compose a letter appealing to the black population to stop their demonstrations.

Document
In response to the letter by the clergymen, Dr. King wrote back in a document stating the struggles for a Blackman to obtain equality
He touched upon many points in his writing
Equal Law, lack of church support, and fear of a violent future if equality is not met.

Equal law
King questions how people could be arrested for nonviolent movements striving to justify equality
He contrast the absolute immorality of unjust laws together with what a just law is.
King states “I would agree with St. Augustine that, an unjust law is no law at all”.
King does not feel that they have broken the law, his answer to the clergymen is that a law that is not morally sound is not a law.

Church Support
King states that he has disappointment in the involvement of the church during these trying times
He feels that the Church has not helped or took any responsibilities to the African American people, hiding behind “ security of stained-glass windows”.
King summarizes his letter by making the point that he hopes that the Church will see it's responsibilities in future times

Fear of Violence in Future
Actions of the African American people are overdue
Their quest was to force the white politicians to negotiate and actually heed the requests for desegregation
As King explains, “past promises have been broken by the politicians and merchants of Birmingham and now is the time to fulfill the right of all people to be treated equal”.

Fear of Violence in Future
Violence is not what King wanted
But admits African Americans will continue to do whatever is necessary, preferably non-violently, to obtain the legal and moral right
If they are not allowed, this peaceful manner can become an uglier action
Dr. King expressed his concern that “if something is not done with these feelings and absolute needs of the African American there will be violence and mayhem, the Negro has many pent-up”

Many considered Kings Letter from a Birmingham Jail a turning point in the battle for civil rights.
On October 16, 1964 Martin Luther King was given the Nobel prize. He was the youngest man in history to receive the price
April 4, 1968 in Memphis Tennessee while Dr. King was Standing on his motel balcony he was assonated
King's is an icon to Americas Civil Rights Movement and will for ever be remembered

Citations
Haberman, Frederick . "Martin Luther King Jr. Biography." Nobelprize.org. 1972. Elsevier Publishing Company, Web. 27 Oct 2009. <http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1964/king-bio.html>.
Brunner, Borgna . "Civil Rights Timeline." infoplease.com. 2007. Web. 27 Oct 2009. <http://www.infoplease.com/spot/civilrightstimeline1.html>.
"Martin Luther King Wins The Nobel Prize for Peace." New York Times (10/1964): Web. 27 Oct 2009. <http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/1014.html>.

Letter From A Birmingham Jail

by core102

Accessibility

Categories

Upload Details

Usage Rights

3 Embeds 7

Statistics