Corruption In Martin Luther's Letter From Birmingham Jail

When the Civil Rights Movement circulated into southern United States in the 1960s, many white southerners felt threatened by the social change of dismantling Jim Crow—state and local laws imposing racial segregation. The 1960s Birmingham, Alabama was one of America’s most racially discriminatory and segregated cities in the nation, in which the slight notion of racial integration of any form was met with violent resistance. In the midst of racial havoc, a unanimous decision was made to brand Birmingham as the focal point to aid the civil rights movement because the city was fueled on hatred and impulsive public officials including George Wallace (Alabama Governor), Eugene Connors (Director of Public Safety), and deputy sheriff (James Hancock).

If a black man agitated against the law for example he tried to register to vote the Klan would use violence. They would start by intimidation, meeting the man on the street in a group and beat him for his actions and the Klan would also burn crosses in black people’s lawn to intimidate them more. Economically the Ku Klux Klan would also use scare tactics to keep African Americans out of white neighborhood because they didn’t want them there and feared change. By keeping African Americans segregated from whites, they thought keeping them grounded and stuck in their place would make the south great again. In closing, the role racism played in the emergence of the Ku Klux Klan was tremendous because of all the heinous acts the Klan did to the African Americans to keep them down in the south and all over the United States.

Racism was at it’s high in Maycomb, Alabama. Many African-American people were dealing with racism and discrimination every day. Atticus, who had defended Tom Robinson in his case against Bob Ewell knew from the very start that the jury would be biased and not favor Tom. He states on page

The goal in going to prison is making the unfair laws public and calling more attention to them. Thoreau speaks out on how important it is to protest these unfair laws and how breaking them is a form of protest. In Letter From a Birmingham Prison, King writes about how he was arrested for peaceful protest. He was protesting the unfair laws and treatment against African Americans.

History has only proven that the insufficiency of equality as individuals brings hostility between people. For example, the discrimination that people of color had suffered due to the rules and restrictions that were imposed to them. Even though, they were American born citizens, the government was not treating them as equal. Therefore, they started to fight for their rights; most of their manifests were non-violent but due to the discernment from the opposite side some of those protests ended up in riots. Dr. Martin Luther king Jr. even describes their frustrations on a letter that he wrote to his oppose white fellow.

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. This letter was written when he was arrested after peacefully protesting about segregation and how the black people didn’t agree with the law. In the letter, Martin Luther King Jr.’s feelings are being expressed toward the unfair events and it is an example of a well-written argument. In the letter are three claims pointed from King, it states he has a valid reason for being in Birmingham, the black community has no alternative, but to demonstrate and the need for justice is urgent. Also, it discusses king’s intentions during the civil rights movements.

During the early 60s and 50s America was an unforgiving place for people with colored skin or different racial backgrounds than white people would be separated and discriminated because they were different. With the help of people of Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights activists, they were able to outlaw and diminish segregation with peaceful protest and speeches. Segregation was a horrible because all it was is just people hating other people just because the way they look or racial backgrounds. In the early 60s and 50s segregation was a huge thing back then and many different activities and a lot of different things were designated for different races.

This state, known for its rigidly enforced Jim Crow laws and KKK, who had previously bombed 18 places in Alabama. Protests in Birmingham, known as ‘Project C’, were lead by Martin Luther King jnr and were aimed at being peaceful; to undermine the city's rigid segregation system. Sit ins , economic boycotts and meetings (inspired by the boycott in Montgomery) were held while trying to gain equality in Birmingham, however the pivotal moment occurred on 7th April when the Public safety commissioner Eugene Bull Connor reacted to non violent marchers by releasing dogs onto demonstrators and fire hosing them. Images and videos of this event featured globally in the media, consequently provoking outrage due to the sights of unarmed demonstrators who were non-aggressive being attacked by the police. These scenes stimulated a great deal of good by bringing international and national shame on Birmingham.

I’ve already mentioned the Occupy Wall Street movement that lead to many upset working class citizens camping out in protest but there’s much more where that came from. The Black Lives Matter movement is something that just about every American has an opinion on. Whether you agree with the protesters or think they’re being ridiculous; you can’t argue that they haven’t caused an uproar. Just this summer there were plenty of protests and controversy over whether or not the confederate flag should be removed from government buildings. For many the flag is a reminder of slavery but others argue it’s just a way to show southern pride.

slaves wherever they were, this new change brought great difficulty to the Southern black population. The Purpose of the Reconstruction Era was to create a society where blacks and whites could co-exist with slavery. Blacks did not know how to be free and whites did not know how to have freed slaves around them. The south saw the Reconstruction Plan as a humiliating, even vengeful imposition and did not welcome it. After the war, many teachers from the south and north worked to educate the newly emancipated population.

On April 16, 1963 Martin Luther King, Jr. while confined in the Birmingham City Jail wrote a letter to the clergymen whom disapproved of his actions by calling him and other nonconformists “outsiders coming in”. During the civil rights movement the city of Birmingham was known to be one of the most segregated city in the United States. The City of Birmingham was known for its police brutality against blacks. They’re where also many unsolved cases such as bombing of homes and churches occupied by blacks. Kings letter was an opportunity for him to express the purpose behind the nonviolent campaign.

They were also on the bottom of the industrial chain. The continuance of these problems had a disastrous effect on African Americans and their families. The Black Panthers Party eventually began to stand up for themselves and fight back. They strongly believed in self-defense.

Letter from Birmingham Jail The “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King Jr was a letter that he wrote to answer the statement to fellow clergymen for calling his activities “Unwise and untimely. First, he explained the reason why he was in the Birmingham; it was because he could not ignore the injustice problem there. The injustice anywhere was the reason for him become active in working for civil rights in Birmingham even though he did not claim permanent residence there.

From 1954-1968 the civil rights movements emitted leaders such as Martin Luther King to speak on behalf of the unpleasantness of segregation. African Americans were marginalized, belittled and often times lynched for acquiring the color of their skin. It took strong bravery, determination, leadership and motivation for Martin Luther king and many other civil rights leaders to finally stand up for human rights. Martin was able to accomplish numerous abolitions such as providing leadership in the Montgomery bus boycott (1955) and the March on Washington, (1963) which stimulated passing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting rights act of 1965. Motivation and determination played a key role with motivation being the sight of suffering African Americans.

Thesis In our generation of black teens, racism has had the most detrimental effects on them. African americans have delt with years of discrimination and oppression from other races, mainly whites. Racism has brought out protests, riots, and the BLM movement. Blacks and other minorities feel that there is no freedom or equality in America.