Introduction
“Letter from Birmingham Jail” written by Martin Luther King Jr. is an open letter to Southern White clergymen in response to authorities’ brutal response to Black people’s demonstrations and protests against segregation. In a highly polite but assertive manner, Martin Luther King Jr. explains why non-violent protests are necessary. The majority of Dr. King’s arguments deserve close attention due to their credibility, and the most significant ones are presented in this paper.
Discussion
First of all, by comparing Blacks with early Christians, Dr. King aims to demonstrate that the history of oppression is genuinely timeless, however, oppressed people have always been able to rise for their human rights (King Jr., 1963). In this case, he makes an attempt to prove that fighting against violence and oppression is inevitable and just. Moreover, he provides multiple evidence that Blacks’ protests have valid reasons as these people are continuously discriminated against in all spheres of life, as immoral and unjust laws are applied exclusively to them creating segregation.
One more important argument of Dr. King that supports his position is that protests began after multiple attempts by the representatives of the Black community to regulate disagreements peacefully and attract White authorities’ attention to the inappropriateness of segregation. However, these efforts were ignored even by the Church demonstrating hypocrisy in relation to Black people’s protection (King Jr., 1963). Thus, the unwillingness of parties to negotiate and solve existing issues resulted in protests.
Conclusion
Finally, Dr. King insists that immoral and unjust laws of segregation should be banned as they negatively impact both oppressors and oppressed people. In particular, they create an unnatural sense of superiority of one group over another and degrade human personality.
Reference
King Jr., M. L. (1963). Letter from Birmingham Jail. Web.