Civil Disobedience And The Civil Rights Movement

In Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” King writes to fellow clergymen defending his view on nonviolent protest and his actions in his protest against the racial injustices during that time. King is a reverend from the South and a Civil Rights activist. King was arrested while partaking in an anti-segregation march. Segregation laws were part of the Jim Crow Laws (any state law discriminating against black persons) arrangement of separation of races in schools, restaurants, bathrooms, and so on for blacks and whites that existed a long ways past the period of, particularly in the American South.

Martin Luther King, Jr. sat in Birmingham jail not because he committed a crime but because he took part in a non-violent demonstration. King received an invite to a nonviolent demonstration by a local church and was later jailed for his actions (King 1). While in jail, King reflected on the injustice in not only Birmingham, but the world as well. King addressed injustice as a universal wrong which can only be undone by people themselves and not by action forced by the government. He quickly announced that keeping the peace and obeying the law are not the same, the people ahead do not simply relinquish their role because of the selfishness of the human nature. Those who are oppressed will seek to leave injustice behind. Martin Luther

Civil disobedience is present in our day to day lives. During the civil rights protests occurring in Birmingham, AL, Eugene Connor was the Commissioner of Public Safety who publicly attacked African Americans with fire hoses and dogs. The Boston Tea Party was a rebellion which led to major tax reformation. Another moment in history of disobedience would be the Civil Rights movement. Oscar Wilde claims social progress is promoted through disobedience and rebellion which is valid.

In Thoreau 's essay Civil Disobedience he makes the point that bystanders are just as bad as criminals and that people should stand against unjust crimes even if it means going against the law. And to some extent I do agree because in the past people have broken unjust laws and have created change. A well-known example would be when Rosa Parks sat on the bus in the "White-only" seating area, which lead to important events that helped push the Civil Rights movement forward. But I think that it depends on which laws they choose to break and how far they choose to go with it.

Martin Luther King, Jr. paved the way for the civil rights movement as he was unrelenting in his strive to eliminate segregation and the social system that upheld it. He fought for justice, freedom, and the equality of opportunity. He is famous for his use of civil disobedience to fight without fighting back, to accept the consequences of his defiances, and to use the initiatives of fellow citizens to act in opposition against the laws discriminating against people of color. King was an activist, but first, he was a pastor. He received a letter through the newspaper from other clergymen trying to discourage his efforts. Responding from a jail cell, King wrote a fifty paragraph letter on scraps of paper, justifying his cause and refuting their claims. In paragraphs fifteen to twenty-two, he specifically explains the effectiveness and necessity of his efforts. Martin Luther King, Jr. successfully justifies civil disobedience by utilizing logos developed through skillful syntax, and ethos built by thoughtful selection of detail.

In the “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, by Martin Luther King Jr., the central idea is that he strongly believes in nonviolent protests and to explain to the clergymen why he is in the Birmingham Jail. King gets his point through by using the rhetorical devices pathos, ethos and repetition. The letter defends the idea of a nonviolent protest for all of the african americans in Birmingham, Alabama. King writes “ WHILE confined here in the Birmingham city jail, I came across your recent statement calling our present activities “unwise and untimely.” Seldom, if ever do I pause to answer criticism of my work and ideas” (pg1 par.1).

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a protester and leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement, greatly known for his use of nonviolent forms of demonstration. On a specific occasion, King was arrested for leading a peaceful protest as part of the Birmingham Campaign, which attempted to bring national awareness to the gruesome treatment endured by blacks. While in jail, King replies to the clergyman’s remarks of him being a foreign agitator in his “Letter from a Birmingham jail,” passionately defending the actions he took. The clergymen accused King of being an extremist, as they saw his relentless protesting and civil disobedience as a threat to a stable political and social system. In paragraphs 27-32, King attempts to persuade the

Civil disobedience is the refusal to comply with certain laws or to pay taxes and fines, as a peaceful form of political protest. Various groups of people have been using civil disobedience for centuries, including the colonists when they refused to pay British taxes, Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights movement in the Unites States during the mid-1900s, Mohandas Gandhi, and David Thoreau. Civil disobedience is still a practice used to this day and is an effective way of protesting but like all other things it does have its flaws. I think civil disobedience does better than it does bad.

A great era for civil disobedience in the United States of America, would have to be the 1960’s. It was a time for figureheads, such as Rosa Parks, and Martin Luther King Jr., to sprout up and be acknowledged by history. Now known as the civil rights movement, people

Not only were many laws changed and created, but even more were broken in an attempt to better our once unjust society. Martin Luther King Jr., arguably the most influential leader of this movement, was an avid supporter of civil disobedience during this era. He participated in countless sit-ins and protests, including the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1956, in which he and almost one hundred other activists were arrested for peacefully protesting discrimination in the Montgomery public transit system. In “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, written in 1963 after he was arrested for partaking in a nonviolent protest, King offers explanation as to why he practices civil disobedience and what he hopes to achieve in doing so. In this letter, King admits, “In no sense do I advocate evading or defying the law…that would lead to anarchy. One who breaks an unjust law must do so openly, lovingly, and with a willingness to accept the penalty”. However, he also stated that in this fight, it is necessary to “[stand] up for what is best in the American…thereby bringing our nation back to those great wells of democracy which were dug deep by the founding fathers in their formulation of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence”. In his words, civil disobedience is more than ignorance of law; it is just one of the necessary measures that must be taken to restore equality in a

Civil Disobedience in the Civil Rights Movement The idea of bringing change through action and protest is found throughout the history of men, but the question of which form of protest is the best for achieving objectives has always remained. Based off protests spanning across millenniums, it is clear non-violent resistance is the answer. Non-violent resistance, more specifically civil disobedience, is a public,nonviolent and political act with the goal of bringing change in the law or policies of the government (Darity 2008). The Civil Rights Movement was the result of generations of struggle in the African American community as they fought against institutional racism, inequality, and segregation.

Civil disobedience has been quite a common occurrence in 2016 and has manifested itself in many issues such as the black lives matter movement,anti-trump protests and a democracy spring march on washington which protested big money in politics. I think that throughout the history of our country that civil disobedience has achieved tremendous victories for civil rights and equality and is a very important tool that should be used when necessary as was the case in 1950 when racism was still oppressing minority groups.I think that racial equality has been achieved on a systematic level but there are still instances of racism that do occur, be it when applying for a job or in a situation with the police.The black lives matter movement is perhaps

Martin Luther King preached and practiced civil disobedience, as in the refusal to comply with certain laws in a peaceful form of protest. From his “I have a dream” speech, to his march from Selma to

Peaceful resistance to laws can positively impact a free society; however this needs to be studied on a case- by- case basis. For example, several nights ago at the University of California at Berkley, there was a conservative speaker that was scheduled to speak but he was interrupted by protestors that were protesting his speech. They would not allow him to speak because his speech was not aligned with their beliefs. Due to this act of violating the laws that protect his speech, he was not able to share his message with his audience. This is a study on how activism can and does look allot like total intolerance of others. This brings me to what I feel is one of the most argregous acts of civil disobedience in history.

In Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, King discusses the importance of civil disobedience being performed. King is confined in the Birmingham city jail and decides to respond to the criticisms of his fellow clergymen although he often does not acknowledge such statements. King’s understanding of civil disobedience is clearly reflected in his use of rhetoric and includes violating the law in peaceful terms to protest unjust laws and circumstances.