Dr. Martin Luther King’s Funeral and Assassination Essay

     It was a glorious April 4th evening as Martin Luther King and hundreds of followers were gathering for a civil rights march. Many cheered on as the civil rights leader graciously out step on the second floor balcony of the Motel Lorraine. Roaring cheers rose from the crowd rose up as Martin Luther King stand there waving his arm with his heart warming smile waiting for the uprising taper off so he can continue with his speech. When suddenly a piercing blast broke the noise and the crowd’s cheerful spirit died. A cold chill went through all who were present fore in the back of their minds there was no doubt that their King had just been

Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. His assassination was a very heartbreaking topic. He was shot by James Earl Ray by a single rifle shot. Martin Luther King's Assassination was unjustified.

There were many people throughout the history of the United States that helped to get equality for African Americans; however, one man's voice moved an entire race. That one man is Martin Luther King, Jr. He has a way of making you listen when he speaks and of making you understand his ideas. Many people did listen and he motivated a whole race of people to strive with him on his quest for equality. The events in his life from early life, civil rights, and later life led him to be one of the most powerful people in the movement towards civil rights.

The aftermath of King’s death and Kennedy’s response can go multiple ways, from violent riots to peaceful protests to change in the way America thinks. If it were not for Kennedy’s speech, chaos would’ve swept the nation, and equality would’ve become out of African Americans’ grasp. In a way, Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination was a burning fire, and Robert F. Kennedy’s speech was a small

With the people of The United States of America categorized as the audience, King speaks to people of all races and ethnicity. This discriminated audience included the grasping appeals to the ethos, pathos, and logos. As each appeal is fully informed of the rhetorical purpose, King finds a way to encourage all three. Through several metaphors and types of imagery, he makes the decision to speak to all of the appeals in order to accomplish to need for change. Clearly aimed directly at the hearts of blacks and making the whites feel ashamed of their actions brought together a turn in society as they knew it. This specific structure geared towards the audience was the main reason why King impacted Americans across the country and not just at the march. These different appeals mixed within the audience to help King influence his purpose of racial equality as each type of person could relate to his moving words.

After Being Dragged out of their homeland, brought to an unknown country, and forced to be slaves, African-Americans saw a road trip to equality through the eyes of Martin Luther King, Jr. Even after being emancipated from slaves to citizens, African-Americans were not ready to wage the battle against segregation alone. The weight which African Americans carried on their back, was lightened when they began to see what Martin Luther King, Jr. brought to the table against segregation. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the single most important African-American leader of the Civil Rights Movement and was responsible for dramatically improving the chance of equality for African-Americans. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the key individual, which helped

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

‘Nothing mattered more to king than being an outstanding preacher. Martin Luther King had an exceptional personal some state. He was a very proud and an outspoken man. He had been ‘conditioned’ from the mere age of nine and ordained in a black church for later life purposes (1). At a young age racism surrounded him and was affected first hand. He was abused by a white mill owner purely on the colour of his skin. He also witnessed other black people suffering from violence when he saw a white mob attack and barbarically murder a black man. King was a very opinionated person and became a lead figure head publicly known on a national scale. This came to be

Martin Luther King Jr. was not only a huge civil rights activist, but a person to look up to in such dire times. He gave people hope and spoke of the equality for all. Due to his popularity and worldwide recognition, his death was of course a huge topic to be discussed. On April 4, 1968, Martin Luther Jr. was shot outside his hotel room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. He was rushed to the hospital and later pronounced dead at 7:05 that evening. The announcement of his death immediately caused an uproar and later even violence to occur. Martin Luther King Jr’s death was no ordinary death, upon investigating the case, questions were being brought up. This lead to conspiracy theories to be made about the case of his murder.

“Vicious mobs lynch” and “drown your sisters and brothers” shows the fear that individuals live through each day. Equally, the “hate-filled policemen” support these unjust actions, meaning African-Americans lack any support and protection. Citing “twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty” reveals the hardships they must endure due to this discrimination. Similarly, King reminisces:

The assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. caused racial tensions to escalate even more. “Many whites openly celebrated the murder.” (Westheider 97) “The feeling of anger and frustration did not

People do not acknowledge the struggles that African Americans had to endure for them to be treated equally, the way a true American is supposed to be treated. One of the ways they were not treated equally was by not being able to participate in sports with whites. From the beginning of our nation, colored people were highly disrespected and treated as if they were some type of animals, which have no say in what happens to them. They were not given any opportunities and were treated harshly because their skin color was different. Whites were able to practically do anything they wanted, unlike blacks, who were racially discriminated or beaten for no apparent reason. African Americans were among the worst treated races in the US; however,

Martin Luther was a civil rights activist, a clergy and one of the key personalities behind the formation of the American Civil Rights Movement. The major goal of the movement was to advocate for the abolishment the racial discrimination of the African Americans population. King was shot on 4th April 1968 while he was his motel room at Memphis, Tennessee and was pronounced dead that evening while in hospital2. After the killing, James Earl Ray, who was convicted for murdering King, escaped but was arrested after two months in London. Many people believe that the government was involved in the assassination. Following the death of King, lots of riots and protests emerged in different cities across US.

On the night of April 3, King gave a speech at the Mason Temple Church in Memphis. Just after 6 p.m. the following day, King was standing on the second-floor balcony of the Lorraine Motel, where he and his associates were staying, when a sniper’s bullet struck him in the neck. He was rushed to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead about an hour later, at the age of 39

A Biography of Martin Luther King Jr. "I have a dream…" are the famous words stated by Martin Luther King