Society must protect the robbed and punish the robber. A Letter from Birmingham Jail: To You In April of 1963, Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. found himself in solitary confinement in Birmingham, Alabama. The "Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King Jr. is about the unfair, brutal, and racist treatment the black community has been receiving from white people. And John Bunyan: "I will stay in jail to the end of my days before I make a butchery of my conscience." There are lot of ways to teach . drives home the need for his audience to act. Is not segregation an existential expression of man's tragic separation, his awful estrangement, his terrible sinfulness? backgrounds of the clergymen: When you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. It is the repetition of skill that determines your status and the . This was written because of the resistance of racism? Such an attitude stems from a tragic misconception of time, from the strangely irrational notion that there is something in the very flow of time that will inevitably cure all ills. for peace, watch helplessly as an innocent child develops and unconscious bitterness. Dr. King As the weeks and months went by, we realized that we were the victims of a broken promise. Similarly, King identifies white moderates as being more dangerous to progress than white nationalists, because they believe in order rather than justice and thus they can sound rational and sympathetic even as they stand in the way of racial integration and civil rights. The other is examples from American history: Abraham Lincoln (who issued the Emancipation Proclamation during the American Civil War, a century before King was writing) and Thomas Jefferson (who drafted the words to the Declaration of Independence, including the statement that all men are created equal). Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear drenched communities, and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty. found surrounding his use of two simple, yet powerful phrases: if you and when you., 2 I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action"; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a "more convenient season." Even so, I am sure that, had I lived in Germany at the time, I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers. They are now fully aware, and as such are accountable to use their positions to do something But I must confess that I am not afraid of the word "tension." in Birmingham, Alabama. His famous "Letter from Birmingham" offered a detailed response to the white moderate of his time, rebutting their claims that the direct actions of King's cause, were "untimely" and "unwise". While Mr. Boutwell is a much more gentle person than Mr. Connor, they are both segregationists, dedicated to maintenance of the status quo. Thus it is that I can urge men to obey the 1954 decision of the Supreme Court, for it is morally right; and I can urge them to disobey segregation ordinances, for they are morally wrong. Yes, these questions are still in my mind. So let him march; let him make prayer pilgrimages to the city hall; let him go on freedom rides -and try to understand why he must do so. Every day I meet young people whose disappointment with the church has turned into outright disgust. But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim; when you have seen hate filled policemen curse, kick and even kill your black brothers and sisters; when you see the vast majority of your twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society; when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six year old daughter why she can't go to the public amusement park that has just been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children, and see ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in her little mental sky, and see her beginning to distort her personality by developing an unconscious bitterness toward white people; when you have to concoct an answer for a five year old son who is asking: "Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean? But what you have to understand is that segregation was so deeply ingrained into the culture of the American South that anyone who spoke out against it could find themselves in serious danger. It is as if he grabs you by the. mon, however much it derives its strength from formulaic repetition, is not mere unartistic incoherencey. For more than two centuries our forebears labored in this country without wages; they made cotton king; they built the homes of their masters while suffering gross injustice and shameful humiliation -and yet out of a bottomless vitality they continued to thrive and develop. Negroes have experienced grossly unjust treatment in the courts. The only answer that I can give to this query is that the new Birmingham administration must be prodded about as much as the outgoing one, before it will act. We have some eighty five affiliated organizations across the South, and one of them is the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights. For that, he was hated, jailed, and eventually murdered. To put it in the terms of St. Thomas Aquinas: An unjust law is a human law that is not rooted in eternal law and natural law. I cannot join you in your praise of the Birmingham police department. In the midst of a mighty struggle to rid our nation of racial and economic injustice, I have heard many ministers say: "Those are social issues, with which the gospel has no real concern." I am not unmindful of the fact that each of you has taken some significant stands on this issue. detailing the emotional cause and effect that occur, Dr. King creates a reality that one can almost King was a civil rights activist and minister. By the same token, a just law is a code that a majority compels a minority to follow and that it is willing to follow itself. Any law that uplifts human personality is just. One who breaks an unjust law must do so openly, lovingly, and with a willingness to accept the penalty. Consciously or unconsciously, he has been caught up by the Zeitgeist, and with his black brothers of Africa and his brown and yellow brothers of Asia, South America and the Caribbean, the United States Negro is moving with a sense of great urgency toward the promised land of racial justice. Direct link to leo's post This was written because , Posted 3 years ago. Letter from Birmingham Jail: Repetition BACK NEXT This guy knew how to write a speech. In "Letter from Birmingham Jail", King typically uses repetition in the form of anaphora - repeating the same word (s) at the beginning of consecutive clauses. blasting protesters with fire hoses and attacking them with police dogs. Something within has reminded him of his birthright of freedom, and something without has reminded him that it can be gained. It was "illegal" to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitler's Germany. If his repressed emotions are not released in nonviolent ways, they will seek expression through violence; this is not a threat but a fact of history. Direct link to connoroneill2468's post Was anything adressed aft, Posted 3 years ago. "; when you take a cross county drive and find it necessary to sleep night after night in the uncomfortable corners of your automobile because no motel will accept you; when you are humiliated day in and day out by nagging signs reading "white" and "colored"; when your first name becomes "nigger," your middle name becomes "boy" (however old you are) and your last name becomes "John," and your wife and mother are never given the respected title "Mrs."; when you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance, never quite knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of "nobodiness"then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait. Yours for the cause of Peace and Brotherhood, Posted 3 years ago. Both Christianity and America have personal significance for King, who was a reverend as well as a political campaigner and activist. After reading "Letter from a Birmingham Jail", ask your students to do a scavenger hunt using the storyboard creator. This is sameness made legal. The letter is a powerful of speaking directly at you. He is not talking to the world. Segregation was a blistering injustice and a stain upon the fabric of American history. In the course of the negotiations, certain promises were made by the merchants--for example, to remove the stores' humiliating racial signs. them slap and kick old Negro men and young boys; if you were to observe them, as they Then, last September, came the opportunity to talk with leaders of Birmingham's economic community. Who can say that the legislature of Alabama which set up that state's segregation laws was democratically elected? Since we so diligently urge people to obey the Supreme Court's decision of 1954 outlawing segregation in the public schools, at first glance it may seem rather paradoxical for us consciously to break laws. How we have blemished and scarred that body through social neglect and through fear of being nonconformists. I cannot sit idly by in Atlanta and not be concerned about what happens in Birmingham. And Thomas Jefferson: "We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal . Rather than being disturbers of the peace, many Christians are now upholders of the status quo. I also hope that circumstances will soon make it possible for me to meet each of you, not as an integrationist or a civil-rights leader but as a fellow clergyman and a Christian brother. The repetition of the word "willing" offers emphasis on the topic of civil rights, in an almost exigent and urgent tone. Google Classroom. Our first reading on this front was Martin Luther King Jr.'s " Letter from a Birmingham Jail (1963). mass experiences of unnecessary and cruel police brutality, to the extremely individual and You express a great deal of anxiety over our willingness to break laws. courts. King likens this to the tension in the individual human mind which Socrates, the great classical philosopher, fostered through his teachings. Ending the "Letter" with his celebration of the black man's perseverance might have made a more fitting and appropriate ending, but Dr. King continues into this final argument, which he acknowledges almost as a post-script: "one other pointbefore closing" (184). King made use of ethos, pathos, and logos in his letter; three powerful rhetorical devices that make various appeals to the target audience. As T. S. Eliot has said: "The last temptation is the greatest treason: To do the right deed for the wrong reason.". This was during a larger campaign in Birmingham to spread the word of integration. Rhetorical questions Then write 1-2 paragraphs explaining the connection (for each quote) and why you were interested in this term. not talking to a group; he is talking to you. They are still all too few in quantity, but they are big in quality. It is certainly still poignant today. How can he and others justify breaking the law? Before the pen of Jefferson etched the majestic words of the Declaration of Independence across the pages of history, we were here. clergymen. I hope, sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience. There are two main frames of reference in the letter. But again I am thankful to God that some noble souls from the ranks of organized religion have broken loose from the paralyzing chains of conformity and joined us as active partners in the struggle for freedom. "Letter from Birmingham Jail" Allusion Essay. They will be the James Merediths, with the noble sense of purpose that enables them to face jeering and hostile mobs, and with the agonizing loneliness that characterizes the life of the pioneer. Full text of "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King, Jr. 16 April 1963. This emotional advance is a direct, response to the extremely passive and separated tone of the clergyman. In those days the church was not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was a thermostat that transformed the mores of society. Dr. King led non-violent sit ins at local businesses and marches, hoping to bring change to what he called "the most segregated city in America." Some have asked: "Why didn't you give the new city administration time to act?" Here however, Kings elimination of ambiguity, allows him to put aside the faade of politics and take a unique and forceful one-on-one, man-to- Perhaps the South, the nation and the world are in dire need of creative extremists. 3 Some -such as Ralph McGill, Lillian Smith, Harry Golden, James McBride Dabbs, Ann Braden and Sarah Patton Boyle--have written about our struggle in eloquent and prophetic terms. picture of the true events of Birmingham, forcing his audience to be involved in his cause. I commend the Catholic leaders of this state for integrating Spring Hill College several years ago. More and more I feel that the people of ill will have used time much more effectively than have the people of good will. But your statement, I am sorry to say, fails to express a similar concern for the conditions that brought about the demonstrations. kingencyclopedia.stanford.edu/kingweb/popular_requests/frequentdocs/clergy.pdf. Yes, I love the church. I have earnestly opposed violent tension, but there is a type of constructive, nonviolent tension which is necessary for growth. Where were they when Governor Wallace gave a clarion call for defiance and hatred? Far from being disturbed by the presence of the church, the power structure of the average community is consoled by the church's silent--and often even vocal--sanction of things as they are. connect with anyone from any culture. Instead, some have been outright opponents, refusing to understand the freedom movement and misrepresenting its leaders; all too many others have been more cautious than courageous and have remained silent behind the anesthetizing security of stained glass windows. Direct link to weyker's post It was written because Dr, Posted 3 years ago. It has taken Christianity almost two thousand years to accomplish what it has. And Abraham Lincoln: "This nation cannot survive half slave and half free." When the time came, he honoured his promise and came to Birmingham to support the action. I say this as a minister of the gospel, who loves the church; who was nurtured in its bosom; who has been sustained by its spiritual blessings and who will remain true to it as long as the cord of life shall lengthen. Extremism doesnt have to mean one is a violent revolutionary: it can simply denote extreme views that one holds. Dr. King led non-violent sit And I am further convinced that if our white brothers dismiss as "rabble rousers" and "outside agitators" those of us who employ nonviolent direct action, and if they refuse to support our nonviolent efforts, millions of Negroes will, out of frustration and despair, seek solace and security in black nationalist ideologies--a development that would inevitably lead to a frightening racial nightmare. He writes: "All Christians know that the colored people will receive equal rights eventually, but it is possible that you are in too great a religious hurry. Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds. A just law is a man made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. c. Analyze and explain how King's references to help develop his overall ideas about "nonviolent" using textual evidence to support your answer? Before closing I feel impelled to mention one other point in your statement that has troubled me profoundly. I can assure you that it would have been much shorter if I had been writing from a comfortable desk, but what else can one do when he is alone in a narrow jail cell, other than write long letters, think long thoughts and pray long prayers? In our own nation, the Boston Tea Party represented a massive act of civil disobedience. He challenged the unjust economic structures of American business and government. It was here, sitting in a bleak barred cell I have just received a letter from a white brother in Texas. This "Wait" has almost always meant "Never." We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people. Rather, I have tried to say that this normal and healthy discontent can be channeled into the creative outlet of nonviolent direct action. In April of 1963, Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. found himself in solitary confinement In the midst of blatant injustices inflicted upon the Negro, I have watched white churchmen stand on the sideline and mouth pious irrelevancies and sanctimonious trivialities. In his " Letter from Birmingham City Jail ," Martin Luther King effectively uses . King addresses the objection that his actions, whilst nonviolent themselves, may encourage others to commit violence in his name. repetition of direct personalized phrases blended with clear imagery forces his audience to be Like many others, we waited to see Mr. Connor defeated, and to this end we endured postponement after postponement. This passage is a rather concise description of the call to arms that lies within the "Letter from Birmingham Jail.". That would lead to anarchy. It gives the segregator a false sense of superiority and the segregated a false sense of inferiority. In your statement you assert that our actions, even though peaceful, must be condemned because they precipitate violence. clergymen and their praise of the Birmingham Police, his language is anything but passive: Frequently we share staff, educational and financial resources with our affiliates. We should never forget that everything Adolf Hitler did in Germany was "legal" and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was "illegal." "Letter From Birmingham City Jail" would eventually be translated into more than 40 languages. I would agree with St. Augustine that "an unjust law is no law at all.". First, I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. If I have said anything in this letter that overstates the truth and indicates an unreasonable impatience, I beg you to forgive me. Direct link to Mohammad ishaq khalil's post how did he get to birming, Posted 2 years ago. King expresses his disappointment with the white church for failing to stand with him and other nonviolent activists campaigning for an end to racial segregation. ." A Call for Unity. A Call for Unity, King Encyclopedia , 19 Dec. 2000, He called ALL Americans to a better vision of the possibilities of community. You may well ask: "Why direct action? On the basis of these promises, the Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth and the leaders of the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights agreed to a moratorium on all demonstrations. The other force is one of bitterness and hatred, and it comes perilously close to advocating violence. I commend you, Reverend Stallings, for your Christian stand on this past Sunday, in welcoming Negroes to your worship service on a nonsegregated basis. seen its dogs sinking their teeth into unarmed, nonviolent Negroesif you were to Fatherhood is something that transcends time and space. I suppose I should have realized that few members of the oppressor race can understand the deep groans and passionate yearnings of the oppressed race, and still fewer have the vision to see that injustice must be rooted out by strong, persistent and determined action. A "Letter from the Birmingham Jail" (1963), by Martin Luther King Jr. was written in response to a letter published by Alabama clerics. When I was suddenly catapulted into the leadership of the bus protest in Montgomery, Alabama, a few years ago, I felt we would be supported by the white church. In Kings rebuke the eight 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, so must we see the need for nonviolent gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood. 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