One of the outstanding personalities who significantly changed African Americans’ position during the civil rights movement was Martin Luther King. Luther’s death united the black community under the common sorrow. Luther King’s personality, his life, and his death caused more significant changes in expanding the rights of the African American people. The civil rights movement, which he led, achieved significant progress in the fight against racial segregation. The death of King became a symbol of equality in American and world history. Since the advent of Dr. King, African Americans were granted the opportunity to get a better education and job on a legal basis.
The most vital impact of this assassination is the change in Americans’ mindsets. Such aggression was considered immoral, which impacted the white people’s perception. One of the examples of the death of an activist impact can be considered the election of Barak Obama in 2009 (Bickford & Byas, 2019). Another event can be associated with the sphere of education. Many universities and colleagues added particular points to the representatives of racial minorities to minimize the opportunities gap between white and black students (Bickford & Byas, 2019). Electing of Barak Obama was not directly dependent on Luther’s death. Undoubtfully, trusting the black president was the conscious decision of the Americans, which was supported by the position advanced during Luther’s life. On the contrary, in the second example, events would be unlikely to happen if Dr. King had not been killed. The alleviating conditions for representatives of racial minorities were advanced as compensation for suffering, including the death of the leader and the hope of the whole black community. Therefore, both Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and death were vital in improving black people’s status in America.
Reference
Bickford, J., & Byas, T. (2019). Martin Luther King’s historical representation within primary, intermediate, and middle-level books.The History Teacher, 52(4), 549–593.