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 to participate in our political process. The right and duty to vote is sacrosanct in the American system. We are told time and again that our message can be heard through our vote. Impeding that amounts to stealing one’s voice. African Americans endured unimaginable hardships in this land and were powerless to effect change in the system with their vote. I find this to be the height of injustice.

Another example of injustice in this King’s letter is the way he describes his arrest. He writes, “I have been arrested on a charge of parading without a permit. Now, there is nothing wrong in having an ordinance which requires a permit for a parade. But such an ordinance becomes unjust when it is used to maintain segregation and deny citizens their First Amendment privilege of peaceful assembly and protest”. As King explains how a just law can become unjust through impulsive or malicious application, I find myself perplexed by the situation. African American citizens are struggling for the equality America was founded on, and these people are being arrested for improper parading. After exhausting many other avenues, African Americans moved to peaceful protest and even that was stifled. I find myself asking where else were they to turn, how else could they effect change, and where is their justice?

Furthermore, the most substantial proof that King was right in 1963 is that his letter continues to resonate today, because the issues he addressed are still with us. The 1963 letters laid out two experiences of living in the US, two views of history, and two views of the church. These contrasts in society continue to exist. In the America of today, the relationship of race and power, never a simple matter, has become ever-more complex. The Tea Party movement, an initiative that emerged between the election and inauguration of the first US President of color, is feeling and flexing considerable political muscle. Talking about slavery, on the other hand, is distasteful and off-putting, and brings in messy reminders of a past from which many American citizens would choose to distance themselves.

The power of Dr. King’s letter continues to resonate for us today, for he speaks into our context and challenges that we face in the United States of 2015. The struggle that African Americans face for their voice to be heard was present during the Civil War and during the Civil Rights movement, and of course it continues today, demonstrated by the killing of an unarmed black teenager by a white police officer in Ferguson, and the rioting and looting that ensued. Segregation did not only exist when Martin Luther King Jr. wrote this letter, it still exists today, everywhere. The word race puts various perceptions in people’s mind, and it is also a word that is associated with so many different emotions, thoughts, and negative and positive words.

In conclusion, Martin Luther King’s letter is eloquently written and full of wonderful lessons for all human beings. This piece inspires me to demonstrate empathy to those enduring struggle, to be a catalyst for justice, and to recognize the good in our world.