Sample Details
Subjects
History
Civil Rights Activists
Type
Report
Assessment
Reviewed by
IvyPanda Team
Pages
2
Words
559
Facts about Topic
Date of Birth
January 15, 1929
Famous of
American Baptist minister and activist who became the most visible spokesperson and leader in the American civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968
Known for
Peace movement, Civil rights movement
Occupation
Baptist ministeractivist
Education
Crozer Theological Seminary (BDiv),
Morehouse College (BA),
Boston University (PhD)
Spouse
Coretta Scott ​(m. 1953)​
Children
Yolanda, Martin,
Dexter, Bernice
Awards
Congressional Gold Medal,
Presidential Medal of Freedom,
Nobel Peace Prize
Death
April 4, 1968
Cause of death
Assassination by gunshot
Quotes
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."
"The time is always right to do what is right."
Interesting facts
Martin Luther King Jr. was the youngest person at the time to receive a Nobel Peace Prize.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Report (Assessment)

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Martin Luther King, Jr. was a human right activist who advocated for the rights of the Negroes in 1950s and 1960s. From a Birmingham jail, he wrote a letter in response to criticisms from his fellow clergymen. In the letter, he underscored several issues raised by his critics. He observed that the Whites had continually segregated and oppressed the Negroes despite the fact that, the latter had tried to emancipate themselves from the demeaning chains of racial prejudice and segregation that clouded the society.

As a human right activist and a Christian leader, Luther dedicated his life in championing for the rights of the Negroes coupled with creating a just society that upheld human dignity. Although he acted legally and morally in his quest for equality and liberation, Luther became weary of the incessant postponement of negotiations between the Whites and the Negroes.

Ultimately, Luther asserted that, since it was wrong to employ immoral means to achieve moral ends, it was equally wrong to employ moral means to preserve immoral ends of segregation and racial prejudices. Therefore, he decided to protest; an act that sent him to jail. His protests were in line with the first amendment to the United States constitution that gave the right to assembly and protest, because he held the demonstrations without a permit to protest.

In jail, Luther received a considerable deal of criticism from his fellow clergymen who argued that his demonstrations were unwise and untimely, for he did not allow ample time for commencement of negotiations. In response to their criticism, Luther said that he was in jail because of injustice against the Negroes, both in Atlanta and Birmingham. He noted that injustice anywhere threatened delivery of justice everywhere.

Despite the fact that the Negro leaders sought constructive negotiations with the White leaders, the agreements did not last. The Negro’s woes continued unabated, which prompted for direct action to create constructive tensions that favoured negotiation. Realizing that oppressors cannot bestow freedom voluntarily, Luther decided to use demonstrations as means of demanding and earning the long awaited freedom and justice, which the Whites had continually withheld.

In his quest for equality, Luther asserted that there were two laws, just and unjust laws, depending on the person enforcing them. While just laws were consistent with moral laws and upheld human dignity, unjust laws were not consistent with moral laws; they only degraded human dignity.

In this view, Luther termed all segregation statutes as immoral and unjust, for they debauched human dignity. Therefore, he argued that he had the moral responsibility to advocate for the compliance of the Supreme Court’s decision of 1954 that outlawed segregation. Moreover, he advocated for the disobedience of segregation statutes because they were immoral.

Ultimately, Luther could not understand why his fellow clergymen turned against his efforts to emancipate the Negroes and uplift humanity. Clergymen termed him an ‘extremist’ who ‘was in a hurry to do things unwisely and untimely’. In response to this criticism, Luther argued that his conscience could not allow him to sit and watch the continued Negroes’ suffering.

Therefore, Luther exhorted his fellow clergymen to dedicate their lives in emancipation of the Negroes and creation of a just society that did not discriminate against people based on skin colour. He also urged the addressees of the letter to use moral means in a bid to achieve moral ends, and condemn preservation of immoral ends.

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