The campaign of Martin Luther King - Essay Example

The campaign of Martin Luther King In the year 1963, the of Birmingham was considered by people as the facing the highest level of segregation in the USA. The pressure by the citizens of this area, led by Martin Luther King junior was because of the treatment of fellow African Americans that was chaotic and portrayed high levels of brutality. This is a study set out to answer the questions, “Was the campaign led by Martin Luther King jr., in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1963 successful? and How did the principles and methods of non-violent direct action aid in or prevent the campaign’s success?” The questions are going to be answered in the order in which they are presented. The campaign was led by Martin Luther King Junior on a Good Friday and it started from a church. The church attendants were burning with eagerness and ready to march in the quest for freedom. Among the objectives of this marching was the call for the black Americans’ right of voting, the allowing of their trying of clothes right at the pace they would do their shopping and also they sought jobs through the same. Among the issues mentioned above, prompting the campaign, there were others like the acceptance of all citizens to public schools regardless of their skin color. To lead the campaign, Dr. Luther King had been invited by the leader for local civil rights in the Birmingham area. A boycott had preceded every action, so as to bring the attention of the business community on movements’ goals. Dr. King was ready to lead this movement, majorly for his most heartfelt agony. To him, he was a leader who was more than ready to walk the talk and the sufferings of the already full jails’ victims drove him forward even the more. Dr. Martin Luther King was through with debate and this campaign presented a chance to bring about change that was deeply sought. To this, he had turned up to honor the invitation in hill full outfit for the march. The leader was prepared to go to prison for the struggle for civil rights. He eventually ended up in jail for this movement and it was from there that he did a popular piece of work “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” The letter was addressed to clergymen from Birmingham of white descent who formed a group of cynics labeling him an agitator from outside. To offer a direct answer to the first study question, then, it can be taken that from King’s words that the Birmingham undertakings were headed for success and would eventually be a story of achieved freedom, not directly but as a step towards it. This nonviolent approach to the African American’s oppression was a sure way of achieving a win-win situation both for the oppressor as well as the ones oppressed. It would give an end of an ultimate healing for both sides. The most essential of this nonviolent move of seeking freedom for the African Americans was in the inclusion of freedom songs as well. The slaves were better placed to use this way of realizing their freedom and this was the case in the movements in this context. According to the sentiments by Dr. King in this book, the Birmingham case was not one of the easiest. It was really difficult, but it offered a scenario of a light at the end of the tunnel. Therefore, considering the words by King as written in this book they were optimistic and they aided in successful breaking of the chains binding black Americans in slavery. This is as per the letter dated January 1964 and which was done by Martin Luther King Jr. Cotton, Dorothy puts it in his book that a similar scenario of success can be achieved in the current day’s predicaments of social justice. A struggle of the same magnitude would frog-jump the nation’s situation into an ideal one. The movement happened in the setting in of year 1963 and it focused on Negro freedom among other things, which was achieved later. Mistreatment involving blacks working in the mines, blistering foundries and upon the docks was waved goodbye. Thus, this Birmingham’s case of struggle presents a successful nonviolent battle that is most recommended for today’s problems facing America. (King, 2011 pp1-19) Answering the second question of the study, there are several reasons of how success was made the end result of the struggle considering vividly the methods as well as principles applied. Nonviolent direct action approach was put to the frontline of the 1963’s movement. Firstly, as the author puts in page 21 of the book, “sheer physical force kept the Negro captive at every point.” (21) Therefore, a different way of tackling the problem was almost the surest approach to secure freedom. Violence was out of question, thus, to gain the long sought after freedom for African Americans. Also, there was failure noted when the techniques that involved psychological action by the Northerners ended up negatively impacting on the southerners. It had the black man lose patience while the white man took it as patient in his own view. In the south the whites involved in the black people segregation would put it that the latter was comfortable with the situation at hand. The rest of the white men presented their ears to the complaints of the African American and interpreted the requests for freedom as truthful. Blacks would agree as well as ignore so as to secure their job’s protection and defense. If they would dare speak the truth, it would lead to job loss, (For instance, the cooks working for the white men). As earlier put by Martin Luther King Junior in this text, thus, the non-violent approach would sure be the only way out of the miasma of terrible treatment and sufferings in the case of blacks. The Birmingham approach was, therefore, a way to seek freedom in the right manner. In the page (xii) of the book, Dr. King writes that to transform the system set up to cause suffering to people, the nonviolent approach would embody the blacks’ moral conviction as well as the sense of self-sacrifice. Most essentially, he said the nonviolence is the sole way to heal the oppressor and the oppressed alike. (King, 2011 pp1-111) To conclude the study, thus, it can be noted from this book by Martin Luther King Junior that nonviolence is the most ideal method of seeking freedom without leaving a scar on either side’s stakeholders of the issue in question. To him, the Birmingham struggle would lead to success, which it eventually did and it was the only way out of the African American oppression. This is while seeking to answer the study’s questions, “Was the campaign led by Martin Luther King jr., in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1963 successful? and How did the principles and methods of non-violent direct action aid in or prevent the campaign’s success?” Reference: Martin Luther King, Jr. (2011). Why We Can't Wait. Edition reissue, reprint. Beacon Press. Read More