Dr. Martin Luther King's Fight For Civil Rights

Martin Luther King Jr. is remembered as one of the greatest leaders of modern humanity. Perhaps the most astonishing aspect of his leadership was his ability to adapt to whatever leadership style was necessary for any specific scenario. He could be a transformational leader if people needed to be mobilized, a servant leader when followers needed to be led by example, or a charismatic leader when he gave any one of his plethora of monumental speeches. Not only could MLK perform in each of these leadership roles, but he excelled at them. Dr. King was one of the greatest, most versatile leaders ever. We will discuss why in the following paragraphs.

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.

One of the many influential people in American History was Dr.Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King was a pastor in the Baptist faith, but he also was a leader in the advancement of colored people. During Dr. King’s time, segregation was at an all time high throughout the nation. But Dr. King, didn’t believe in violent protest, instead he insisted non-violent protest was the way to go. Dr. King held multiple speeches in multiple states about civil rights in America, until he reached the national level. On August

Dr. King tussled with the cares of life looking for solutions, concern for his family, and stood up for righteousness, justice, and truth. Dr. King knew what he was up against was daunting and knew enough to call on the name of Jesus. Dr. King believed in the power of prayer even through the countless number of threats he received and even arrested he stood unyielding for what is right, justice. Dr. King refused to sink in the quick-sands of racism and abhorrence. Dr. King realized that he had to alter the mindset of society if change was to come.

Dr. Martin Luther King, one of the most influential men in the world, had played a pivotal role during the Civil Rights movement. He led the entire nation in the fight to end segregation, but while trying, he faced many obstacles, one being getting arrested during a rally. While in jail, King had time to respond to the critics of his work in the movement, and he wrote a marvelous, captivating response. In King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” he replied and professed his emotions to the white clergymen 's stance on his non-violent organization. In the tense racial south, Martin Luther King Jr. made a brave choice to speak out about the injustice occurring in the city of Birmingham, and explained his steps on how it should be fixed, and displayed the purpose of why it needed to be stopped, or else the frightful actions towards the African-American community will not only continue to flood in the streets of Birmingham, it would continue in the rest of the world. As he discussed these broad discussions, King managed to use rhetorical devices throughout his letter, as well as establish different modes of persuasion.

King's mission was to end segregation. African Americans could not eat at the same restaurants, drink from the same water fountains or use the same restrooms. Peaceful protests erupted throughout the south which brought about nationwide attention. The Birmingham Police did not take well to the protesters and used attack dogs and fire hoses on the demonstrators. Dr. King was jailed along with many of his supporters, including hundreds of schoolchildren. In his letter he defends his non-violent approach for cultural change. He makes clear his position that surpressed people past and present will eventually grow tired and will see their own justice. He wanted to lead the protesters to have a collective mindset to make change without violence and to take a moral high road to affect change. He clarifies his views as to why oppressed people resist their oppression. In addition he expresses his personal belief in the human decency of all Americans. He weaves in past world history as examples to his projected

“I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality...I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word.” These famous words by the honorable Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. best capture his frame of mind and the hopes he once held for the African American people during his fight for civil rights. King was an activist, pastor, and strong leader whose actions played an integral role in the advancement of the African American people as a whole. Born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1929, King spent the overwhelming majority of his life leading the African American Civil Rights Movement by using his very effective non-violent approach. Based off of his strong Christian beliefs, King led a multitude of boycotts, protests, marches, and speeches over the course of his life. These include the Montgomery Movement as well as one of his most famous speeches, the “I Have A Dream” speech.

Although many people may believe that Martin Luther King Jr.’s non-violent leadership style is not as effective as a violent leadership style, but King accomplished numerous things in relationship to the Civil Rights Movement. Martin Luther King Jr. wanted for there to be a day that it didn’t matter the color of one’s skin but what was on the inside. “I have a dream that one day that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character” (King

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is a man widely known throughout the world for being one of the most influential people standing up to racial discrimination, but he didn’t make these changes overnight. In the passage, “Heeding the Call” by Diana Childress, some of his role models and past experiences were described. These things all helped shape him into the man he was and without them he probably wouldn’t have gotten as far as he did.

King's successful civil rights activism, it is said that the “collective strength of individuals, organized in religious, civic, fraternal, and civil rights groups allowed southern blacks to begin overcoming fears reinforced by centuries of racism and repression”(Lawson, 246). The overcoming of these fears consisted of sit-ins, protests, boycotts, and marches. Also, Dr King was a big supporter of non-violence.He “rallied black southerners to confront racism through non-violence, when their instincts might pull them in the other direction”(Lawson, 249). His open mindedness made him a successful leader in terms of the African-American struggle for civil rights. This is what allowed him to connect with not only African-American people, but people of other races as well. Martin Luther King is a great example of someone who did not look for profit for himself. Dr. King’s biggest goal was to achieve equality for his fellow African American people. It was said that Martin Luther King Jr. didn’t just fight for civil rights but he fought for human rights as well. Montaigne makes a statement saying “Let every one but dive into his own bosom, and he will find his private wishes spring and his secret

Martin Luther King is an extraordinary man who has accomplished great thing in his fight against injustice and segregation. like Selma and other cities it was clouded in a storm of racism but Martin Luther King came and reduced it to ash. “I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.” (Martin Luther King) and I think of that wondering if I can live up to those words. Back in the 20’s through 60’s racism was at it’s strongest and it got worse. Martin Luther King had a role model that shaped Dr.King into the man he is and that was his father. Dr. King has achieved many accomplishments and fought many political fights to get Civil Rights.

Over the past three or four weeks I have come to learn a great deal more about Dr. Martin Luther King and all the amazing work he had done to fight for the right of African Americans. I do not know what it is about him, but when I reflect on his life, his legacy, his beliefs, his writings, and his speeches I feel like maybe one day I could make at least a small difference in the world. When I reflect on the things above I notice two features that make Dr. Martin Luther King’s such a big part in the Civil Rights movement. The first of which is his sheer determination, and of course the second one is his public speaking ability and his ability to connect social gospel and rhetoric to help move crowds.

Martin Luther King Jr. used words such as freedom, righteousness, justice, and community to unite the black people throughout America to commit non-violent civil disobedience. The meaning behind these words referred to equality for the black communities concerning education, justice system, housing, and any privileges afforded to whites. He connected the words written by the founding father in the Declaration of Independence with the teachings of the book of Exodus in the Bible to plead his case for Civil Rights. The Declaration of Independence, the constitution, and God all gave black the right to fight for equality. Dr. King associated the Exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt with slavery, segregation, and discrimination, therefore; as the

Dr. King had the courage to face the risk and pursed non-violent call to arms. He led a social movement of equality during a time when he wasn’t supported by most. He was threatened and despised by many but he did not show reluctance or even shaken. In fact, he encouraged others by telling them cold facts

Dr. King gave a speech that changed history forever. Nobody will ever forget of how it changed the USA.