Dr. Martin Luther King’s Letter From Birmingham Jail

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In April of 1963, locked in a Birmingham jail, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote, “Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co-workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation”. In Dr. King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail he accurately displays his distinctive ability to influence public opinion by appropriating ideas from the Bible, the Constitution, and other canonical texts (Autobiography); by establishing his credibility, appealing to the audience’s logic, and invoking the emotional aspects of the African-American plight in this era. Within this letter, Dr. King starts out by establishing his creditability to the clergymen for whom he is writing, with statements like “I feel that you are men of genuine good will and that your criticisms are sincerely set forth”, and “I have the honor of serving as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization operating in every southern state, with headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. We have some eighty-five affiliated organizations across the South, and one of them is the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights” (King). It is in statements like these that he ultimately says to his audience, I am an equal, I stand for the same things you do. These clergymen questioned Dr. King’s methods of protest even though they stated that they ultimately supported his cause. In order to initially obtain their already broken trust, Dr. King appeals to them as colleagues by using scripture and key people within the Bible’s text to capture their attention and regain their trust; with points like “Of course, there is nothing new about this kind of c... ... middle of paper ... ... an answer for a five-year-old son who is asking: "Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?" (King). Furthermore, by establishing his credibility, appealing to the audience’s logic, and invoking the emotional aspects of the African-American plight in 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was able to assert that his activities in Birmingham, Alabama were wise and timely. “What else can one do when he is alone in a narrow jail cell, other than write long letters; think long thoughts and pray long prayers” (King). Works Cited Carlson, Clayborn. "King, Martin Luther, Jr. (1929-1968)." King Institute Home. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. . King, Jr., Martin L. "Letter from Birmingham Jail." English 121 Readings. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2010. 112-26. Print.

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