...Birmingham movement was a culmination of King’s ideas, theology, experiences and civil rights tactics’. How far do you agree with this statement? Martin Luther King undoubtedly played a key role in helping black people win civil rights through the Birmingham movement in 1963. However it can be argued that his leadership though effective was only partly responsible for the gains made by the campaign; as the opposition changed their tactics, Martin Luther King’s ideas and theologies were tested and therefore he was made to harness alternative strategies that had been initiated by other civil rights activists. Essentially the Birmingham movement was crafted to allow the best possible outcome. King preached a distinctive philosophy based on the teachings of Jesus and the example of Mohandas Gandhi. He believed that all Christians should love their enemies and never retaliate. Nonetheless, he also taught that Christians should stand up to injustice. Consequently, he advocated civil disobedience and direct action, insisting that protest should always be peaceful. The perseverance shown through peaceful protest won mass support from both the public and media making it difficult for Federal government to ignore demands. King involved in provoking the authorities but it can be said that the brutality stimulated from such protests was what gave King the upper hand; it provided him with the driving force to challenge the system. Peaceful protest was applied to the Birmingham movement...
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...Dr. King’s Inspiration on Me Born on January 15,1929 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr was born. Dr. KIng has inspired me in so many great ways. He inspired me to stand up and do what is right and never give up doing it. Dr. King Jr. showed all of us that we can make big changes in our community by peacefully protesting. He also showed that if we stick together we can make changes in our community. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was the one man to inspire many people throughout the United States because he led peaceful protests and he never gave up on what he wanted to accomplish. In December 1,1955 to December 20,1956 peaceful African Americans from Montgomery, Alabama boycotted the Montgomery bus system due to segregation ("Montgomery Bus Boycott."...
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...Firstly, Martin Luther King Jr. was an extremely large contributor in gaining civil right of African Americans during the civil rights movements, whose passion for non-violent protesting set an affecting tone in the civil rights movements. Martin Luther King had a large contribution to the reduced amount of injustice and discrimination against African Americans which is present today. As a highly influential social activist in the movements, King created mass publicity highlighting the atrocities which African American citizens were subjected to, which can be demonstrated through the statement “In the eleven-year period between 1957 and 1968, King travelled over 6 million miles and has spoken more than 2500 speeches on many stages” (What did...
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...Peaceful hero African American people have come a long way from the illiterate slaves, who were once picking cotton in fields, to powerful political leaders. A prime example would be President Barack Obama, the first African American president of the United States of America. But first we must ask ourselves, how did this occur? Who lead African Americans to better living standards? Civil rights leaders, such as Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, and Rosa Parks, just to name a few. However, among these great names in history, there is one that stands out, and that man is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King gave hope to those in need with his awe inspiring sermons he performed at the church his grandfather founded. He changed foes to allies with his thought provoking speeches, and lead powerful protests and strikes, with each one ending in a peaceful demonstration. First, a look into the history of Dr. King. Though not known to many, Dr. King was not born with the name Martin; rather, his name was Michael, having changed it due to his father’s name change. The name change came across as a way of honoring the Martin Luther who wrote scriptures on doors. Dr. King was born January 15, 1929 to Reverend Martin Luther King, Sr. and Alberta Williams King in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1960 he served as co-pastor with his father in the Ebenezer Baptist Church, located in Atlanta, till his death, however he became head pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church before then in 1954. At fifteen he graduated...
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...philosophies in which people sought out and followed along with their community for change and equality. Malcolm X a black nationalist, a devoted follower of Islam, Elijah Muhammad. X expressed and taught that white race brainwashed blacks to be patient while enduring injustice around their home and country, preaching anti-white rhetoric and change of America by any means necessary. Some expressed his thoughts on creating an all black society of their own throughout the civil rights era. King seemed as an opposite in most ways but with the same goal of respect and equality of the black community. Following the teachings of Gandhi, throughout his works even though King was a Christian priest. He pursued his vision through a philosophy of peaceful change through sit ins etc. to desegregate the nation. The philosophy of the two were nothing but opposites yet during the 60’s MLK’s ideology was the most suitable for America at that time....
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...movement, Martin Luther King Jr., leader of the SCLC, set the stage for spiritually aggressive non-violent protesting. Malcolm X, on the other side, preached the importance of defending themselves and breaking away from the oppressors denying them their freedoms. Malcolm X, member of the Nation of Islam, preached against the idea of integration and “[forcing themselves] on...
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...partitions were caused by four major factors; methods such as peaceful protest and violence, ideology, effects of tension from jealousy and rivalry and lastly personalities of the different civil rights organisations and their leaders as they were competing for media attention and public recognition. These divisions did limit the effectiveness of the civil rights movement as they slowed down the process and cause many complications. These divisions were extremely clear thought out the 1960s as there was the development of Black Power and their methods of violence which is a contrast to Martin Luther King’s approach which was peaceful protest. In the early 1960s many successes came about for the civil rights movement especially for SNCC and of Martin Luther King. The Greensboro sit-ins led by SNCC in 1960 is an example of a triumph as they demonstrated that civil rights campaigns could spread quickly and also showed that other organisations could work together as the sit-ins attacked all aspects of segregation and it lead to the extending of the existing NAACP campaigns against segregation in education. This was also the case in 1961 during the Freedom Rides. The significance of the Freedom Rides was that they marked a new high point of co-operation within the civil rights movement as they involved CORE, SNCC which was led by Stokely Carmichael and the SCLC as it was such a momentous victory. It is thought that these protests were only victories...
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...Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus.” Martin Luther King was a civil rights activist who wanted better treatment and opportunities for black people. Throughout his fight, the civil rights activist displayed characteristics and actions that made him the perfect person to guide the African American people towards equality. The leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference was able to unite a divided nation at a time in which racial tension was at its peak. Through his words and actions, Martin Luther King was able to influence movements that derived long after his departure. One movement that was inspired by the actions of Martin Luther King is the anti-government...
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...“Letter from Birmingham Jail” In the 1950’s and well through the 1960’s, Martin Luther King Jr. was the main leader of the civil rights movements. There was violence in innocent protesting, cruel bombings, and soul poured speeches. The Civil Right movements, involving people of both skin colors, measured up to a very large sum of events, both implementing segregation and the fight against the segregation. King had experienced many events, both eye opening and cruel, both strong and solid with morals. Yet throughout the turmoil between the differences of both races King did not fail to speak his word. MLK did not fail to make know that what segregation stood for was wrong and treacherous. King did not underestimate his ability to be unwavering...
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...Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., born January 15, 1929, was both an influential minister and a civil rights movement leader. During his time as an activist, King helped to organize nonviolent protests, such as the March on Washington in 1963 where he delivered his powerful and famous “I Have a Dream” speech. In addition to his “I Have a Dream” speech, King also gave many other speeches, which all spoke out against racial segregation and discrimination. On December 25, 1957, Martin Luther King Jr. gave a sermon titled “Loving Your Enemies” at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. In the speech “Loving Your Enemies” King said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” Martin Luther King Jr. wrote his sermon “Loving Your Enemies” while he was in prison for committing non-violent civil disobedience during the Montgomery Bus Boycott. King’s quote refers to Matthew 5:44, which says “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” This section of the gospel of Matthew was a part Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, which Jesus delivered on the Mount of Beatitudes. In Jesus’ sermon he addressed the main principles of Christian discipleship. Through his “Loving Your Enemies” sermon, Martin Luther...
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...Was Martin Luther King right in his letter? In Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter From Birmingham Jail,” King, a reverend from the South and the face of the Civil Rights Movement, writes to his “fellow clergymen,” defending his stance on nonviolent protests, as well as the actions he took in protest against racial injustices. In this letter, King calls for nonviolent action from everyone and especially from religious figures who are near the center of these issues. King claims that nonviolent action is the next step in furthering the civil rights movement. After reading the letter numerous times, I think that it is a masterfully crafted letter, a deeply powerful and captivating piece which contains a lot of emotion. I agree with King’s assertions and believe that he is right in his arguments. In his letter to the clergymen, King writes many examples of things that are wrong. Indignation is an emotion that I find surfacing within myself over and over again as I read, but nowhere is it more apparent than in King’s statement, “Throughout Alabama all sorts of devious methods are used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters, and there are some counties in which, even though Negroes constitute a majority of the population, not a single Negro is registered”. This quote resonates in me as I consider that not only has a whole population of Americans been humiliated, deemed inferior, and denied basic human rights, but they have also, in many cases, been robbed of their means...
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...for all citizens came from great efforts of many radical ideas from great leaders. Two well known advocates for Civil Rights are Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X. While both of these inspiring men worked to break down racial barriers, they had unique and different views on how this goal should be accomplished. To begin with, Martin Luther King Jr. strongly believed in the power of nonviolent protest. King advocated for nonviolent marches and boycotts of businesses of all varieties that refused to hire negros. I personally find this as the best form of peaceful protests fought against the shackles of...
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...On April 12,1963, Martin Luther King Jr. , in his jail cell in Birmingham, receives a letter from 8 local Protestant leaders criticizing the protesters and King himself, describing them as an outside agitator. Martin Luther King Jr., an American Protestant minister and a Civil Rights Activist, replies to the clergymen exposing and shaming them for criticizing his own non-violent protests engendering a tone of dignified passion. Within paragraphs 22 and 23, Martin Luther King develops a tone of dignified passion using various rhetorical strategies. In response to the accusations of King’s protest methods getting out of hand, he utilizes a series of allusions, anaphoras, and incorporates an antithesis to emphasize his ambitions for the Civil Rights...
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...There have been many exceptional leaders throughout history. Some of those leaders include people like George Washington, Thomas Edison, and Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. as part of the aforementioned list resembles a character from the book To Kill a Mockingbird who goes by the name Atticus Finch. Both Atticus and King are very calm and peaceful people who believe violence is not the right answer to things and are very wise and purposeful with the metaphors they use. Atticus Finch and Martin Luther King Jr. in both the book for Atticus and real life for King are very cool headed peaceful people who believe violence is not the answer. In Real life King had been fighting for equal rights and had spoken many times and had made...
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...Malcolm X Versus Martin Luther King Junior’s Methods for Fighting Against Injustice As we all may notice in history, there are no two great men that are alike. With contrasting personalities, both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. play an important role in American history. They were prominent African American figures who stood up for what they believed in, however, they went about acting on their vision in separate ways. Their many beliefs may have stemmed from their childhood and influenced or represented their call-to-action. King grew up in a middle class family and was well educated, whereas, Malcolm X experienced hostile situations as a child and was underprivileged with limited schooling. Malcolm X’s despair about life was reflected in his angry, pessimistic belief that equality is impossible because whites have no moral conscience, whereas King felt that blacks and whites should be united and live together in peace. Although these leaders had the same end results in mind, their means, philosophies, and principles differed. Their intentions were delivered in different styles and purposes – their willingness to employ or not employ violence to achieve their goals. Even though they differed greatly on the philosophies they used to obtain their goal, they shared a common struggle. Their same goal in mind was to achieve equality between all races. As both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. sought to fight against injustice, compared to King, Malcolm X fails to appropriately...
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