Martin Luther King Just Law Analysis

In the novel Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey it is revealed that justice and the law are not the same things. The law can be defined as a set of rules and regulations to be followed and justice can be defined as just behaviour or treatment. The law is meant to ensure that justice is always present but this is not always the case as seen in Jasper Jones. In the novel, the law is not used for justice but is rather used for prejudice, in order for characters of the novel to find justice they must do so outside of the law and to find justice you have to take the law into your own hands.

The literal meaning of justice is ‘the quality of being morally right and fair’ but there are various theories which can be considered and compared since they all define justice in a different way.

Philosophical thought provides the infrastructure that allows society to author moral laws. While morality may be the aim, other variables can cause these laws to become corrupt. The urge for power is one of many, recurring, variables that infect morality. During these times of ‘infection,’ society must contest those who oppose just laws. In order to shine a light on unjust laws, laws are bound to be broken. It is not only lawful to break unjust laws, but the duty of the people to speak up and be a voice for change. It is critical, during these times, to work towards equilibrium with the goal to change the law. Regardless of the circumstances, it is lawful to break unjust laws with the goal to make them just again.

Justice is a civil dispersion of limited resources, respect for people's rights, and respect for morally acceptable laws. Martin Luther King Junior states "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere" What King means when he says this is that we cannot assume of ourselves as separate from all the other people in the world. As king says he can't sit in Atlanta and think that things in Birmingham do not affect him. Instead, he says, we all have to understand that we are connected to all the other people of the world. This is true because we are all part of the same "garment of destiny".

What is law? Law is a system of rules used to govern a society and control the behaviors of its members. In this case, Martin Luther King is charged for breaking a law. King questions the differences between just and unjust laws to justify his actions in Birmingham and the charges of breaking laws willingly. Defending his willingness to break laws, King argues, “How can you advocate breaking laws and obeying other?” He answers to accusation of his willingness to break laws with a well-written argument of what is just and unjust laws. Martin Luther King uses the definition, the categories, and the implication of the law excellently to answer the charges of breaking laws willingly.

What is justice? Is it a fitting punishment for a crime? Or a court or officer of the law? Is it the law itself? It has many definitions and interpretations, depending on various people. Some interpret it very simply, saying that it is fairness in every situation. Others give the word more complication, saying that it is doing what is morally right and fair. Oxford Dictionary defines it as many things, including, “Just behaviour or treatment...The quality of being fair and reasonable.” Black’s Law Dictionary defines justice as, “The constant and perpetual disposition to render every man his due.” All are various meanings and interpretations of one, single, word, that has been explored in many books and novels, including one by Harper Lee. In her novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the characters of Atticus and Mr. Raymond to show the meaning of true justice and how it transcends prejudicial divisions.

However, he then distinguishes between just and unjust laws, insisting that an individual has both a right and a responsibility to break unjust laws. He defines just laws as those that uphold human dignity, and unjust laws as those that “degrade human personality.” Unjust laws, he argues, hurt not only the oppressed, but also the oppressors, since they are given a false sense of superiority.

Not all children are born into the perfect situation, some children are born into a drug oriented and gang related family. “The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education.” This a powerful quote from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. how we can benefit a student’s life. The Giving Children a Mulligan in Life interest group would be a locally funded group in Atlanta which would teach life lessons through the game of golf in a fun and interactive way. “Giving Children a Mulligan in Life” would help with the record high levels of dropouts in this city. Certainly with Atlanta having one of the highest dropout rates in not just Georgia, but in United States at 59.1% with an 8% rise in the last two years reported by the Georgia’s Department of Education (2014) is more than enough of a reason for this group to exist.

King brings in the question, what is a just and unjust law? A just law is one that promotes good morals and is followed by both the majority as well as the minority of society. Martin Luther King Jr. defines an unjust law as:

Martin Luther King used the same idea of unjust laws to justify his actions and nonviolent campaigns. He used this idea to answer the question of how he can support the breaking of some laws, but not others? His simple answer was that there are two types of laws, just and unjust, and "an unjust law is no law at all." (80). He goes on to quote St. Thomas Aquinas, ."..Any law that uplifts personality is just. Any law that degrades human personality is unjust." (80) and says that any individual that breaks an unjust law and accepts the punishment of imprisonment actually has the "highest respect for the law." (81). King makes a very strong point in distinguishing just and unjust laws to advocate his actions, just like Stanton and Anthony do in their address.

King uses logos to expertly define just and unjust laws, he does so multiple time offering several explanations and examples. A just law, he points out, can be unjustly applied as well. King states that an unjust law is one that is enforced on a minority group and not the majority, one that the minority group had no ability to vote for or against, and a law that promotes segregation in it application. King insists that an individual has both a right and a responsibility to break unjust laws. King clarifies the distinction he is trying to make and reassures readers that he is not calling for people to defy the law. King explains how nonviolently protesting a law while accepting the penalty openly is actually expressing a high respect for the law while advocating for change. King backs up his distinction of just and unjust laws when he notes that the laws in Nazi Germany allowed for Jewish persecution, and he would have broken those laws to support the oppressed class had he lived

Thomas of Aquinas asserts that “An unjust law is a human law that is not rooted in eternal law and natural law. Any law that uplifts human personality is just. Any law that degrades human personality is unjust” (Thomas 125). As we can see, this is where King connects to the words of St. Thomas of Aquinas regarding laws that govern society. To King, an eternal and natural law is a law that helps improve mankind. It should make the world a safer and better place. A fitting example of a just societal law is the law regarding seatbelt usage. Since many people were dying in car accidents from not having a seatbelt to hold them back, the United States Government implemented the seatbelt law making it mandatory for anyone operating a car to wear a seatbelt. This law would be considered just in King’s eyes because it helps save lives which in turn uplifts human personality. An unjust law in King’s time would be the law that allowed places to have separate bathrooms for whites and blacks. This law degraded a whole human race, so it would be easily considered as unjust. The management of laws in society can lead to the perseverance of the formation for a more just common good. Martin Luther King really ignited the search for the answer to the question of how we can form a more just society for the common

Our justice system regularly makes decisions that would be universally considered just and in the very same day makes decisions that are universally considered unjust. Based on this, justice must be more about the intention. For the sake of argument imagine a judge who intends with every fiber of his being to be just, makes a decision that in the end turns out to be unjust. I would say this man could still be considered just. Regardless of the outcome, the intention should determine the question of just or unjust. If that same judge admits his mistake and does his best to rectify the situation, he would certainly be considered just. On the other hand if he realizes the mistake and does nothing then he is most unjust. Human beings are incapable of unfailing justice, but when you intend to be just, you should then be considered a just person. So justice must be the intention of the person or entity to pursue truth and fairness.

The conventional accounts of Justice normally begin by stating a fundamental rule of Aristotle – Justice is to treat equals equally and unequals unequally, and that unequal treatment should be in proportion to the inequality. In everyday life though, justice is seen as an attribute of law, while all laws are not necessarily just. Many great socio- political movements of the world have focused from time to time on unjust laws eg Apartheid laws in South Africa and Caste laws in India. Impartiality and fairness are understood to be the two aspects of justice. But it would be misleading to suggest that Justice refers solely to the fair application of a rule.

Justice comes in many form, economically, politically, and culturally. Justice has been explored and has posed with different definition in many eras. It is subjective to everyone and no two people has the same feeling. Individuals throughout society have their own distinctive explanation for justice. A truly just society can happen, but it will never be in a way where everyone will agree. I believe a just society stands with a strong leader that focuses on a unified cultural change in their country for the benefit of the people. King and Machiavelli both pursues a just society with equality between any race, unity, and are an open-minded leader.