Mr White Religion- Martin Luther King Mallika JhambEssay topic : Identify the problems in American Society that Martin Luther King protested against, explain what he did to change these and evaluate to what extent his Christian beliefs affected what he said and did

Slavery in the United States ended in the 19th century. However, African Americans in the 20th century were oppressed and mistreated. The Negros were discriminated against and there was the society in the 20th century America, mostly the southern states were segregated. There was no racial equality in these states. This is where we see that Martin Luther King Jr. gave up his life trying to improve the lives of African- Americans in the southern states of America. He was one of the greatest American Civil rights Leader in 1960s America. He was born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1929. He was a Baptist minister activist. He is best known for acting on the civil rights by using nonviolent civil disobedience. In my essay I will show what Martin Luther King did to change the American society. In the first paragraph, I will talk about the problems in the American society like racism, injustice and segregation. Then I will talk about how society reacted to this, how they protested and what they did to stop the way that the whites treated them. In the next paragraph, I will talk about what effect this had on Martin Luther king and what measures he took to stop such injustice.

For much of the 20th century, parts of America were exploited in terms of the way people were treated. There was racism present in almost every state in America. Racism was a key part of the unfair treatment of the black people in America at that time. Around 50% of all the black people living in the US, were living under the poverty line.1 They were usually migrant workers and lived and worked under appalling conditions. The living conditions of the blacks were poor as well. Moreover, the black people were often denied loans as the neighborhoods that they came from were in decline 2. Martin Luther king did not believe in this unjust racist behavior. In fact, while he was in school, he became a member of the executive committee of the National Association of the Advancement of Coloured People. Moreover, Injustice was another main issue that ignited due to racism. The coloured people were treated inferior to the white people in several aspects. They did not have the right to vote, they could not marry a white person and what was even worse was that African American children were not allowed to be in the same classrooms as white children. 3

Furthermore, there was segregation in most of the southern states of America like in Alabama. All whites supported such separation of the white and black people during that time until Martin Luther King came up with the belief of supporting integration. In the south, there were state laws known as the Jim Crow Laws that were enacted between 1876 and 1965. These laws mandated racial segregation in all public facilities with a separate but equal sign for African-Americans. Public areas such as schools, public transport, restrooms, restaurants and drinking fountains were all segregated. Martin Luther King did not support this and we see this through the Rosa Parks incident. On 1st December 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks, a coloured woman refused to obey an order given by bust driver James Blake to give up her seat in the coloured section to a white person after the white section was full. As a result of this, she was arrested. Looking at this incident King decided to call for a Bus boycott. This Montgomery Bus boycott lasted for over a year and as a result, the government in Montgomery was forced to remove segregation from the transport system. Jim Crows Laws being enacted by childrenhttp://reconstructionerajimcrowlaws.weebly.com/list-of-jim-crow-laws.html

Another such act took place on May 2nd 1963, when the coloured race couldnt take it anymore, 500 black teenagers were arrested during protests in Birmingham, Alabama. They were protesting because they wanted the rule about racial segregation to change. They wanted civil rights to be enforced, that every individual in a civilized society has the right to be treated equally. Some of them prayed, while others were laughing and singing as they were arrested. I believe that this was inspired from Martin Luthers letter from Birmingham jail where he outlines his reasons for protesting and going to the Birmingham city jail. He started his letter by saying My Dear Fellow Clergymen: While confined here in Birmingham city jail, I come across your recent statement calling my activities unwise and untimely.4 This is where we understand that even though he received criticism from his local church leaders and everyone in society, he still protested for what he believed in. he says he went to Birmingham due to the injustice present there. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice anywhere 5 King is referring to the government who is biased. He is saying that the system is unjust and discriminated based on colour, which he finds unfair. His belief in this wrongdoing is what helped in refining this system that was unfair. Rosa Parks arrest report http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/documentsentry/doc_arrest_report_for_rosa_parks/

In addition to this, on august 28th 1963, the largest political rally for human rights took place in the United States. This rally was called for the Civil and Economic right for African Americans, This march is credited to pass the Civil Rights Act (1964) and the Voting Rights Act (1965). More than 200,000 people took place in this march. All Americans shared a wonderful experience where they heard speeches, songs and prayers lead by clergymen, politicians and civil rights leaders. However, the climax of the day was the I have a dream speech given by Martin Luther King. This I have a dream speech, originally known as "Normalcy, Never Again." 6, was one of the greatest speeches of all times. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain. 7 May seem like an original statement, however, it is taken from the Isaiah 40:4-5. This is where the prophet says on the Lords Day, the whole Earth and all its inhabitants will reflect Gods glory.8 Let justice flow like a river and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream." 9 is taken from Amos 5:24. Martin Luther King has used prophet Amos quote from the bible to say that justice is rolling down and that children should not be judged by the colour of their skin but by their character. The key message behind Kings speech is that all people are created equal and that is why they should be treated equally as well. As the bible says that everyone is equal in the eyes of God, King believes that they should be equal in the eyes of law as well, despite the persons religion, race, colour or gender. We know that Kings speech was successful because in 1964, the Civil Rights Act were enacted, which prohibited segregation. He then received the Nobel Peace Prize for his work.10 28 August 1963 Press release, SNCC Text of speech to be delivered at Lincoln Memorial

http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/documentsentry/press_release_text_of_speech_to_be_delivered_at_lincoln_memorial/

Martin Luther King was greatly influenced by the teachings of Jesus and followed his example by standing up for what he believed in, justice and equality. He made the ultimate sacrifice by refusing to back down in spite of death threats. Moreover, having studied theology at the University of Pennsylvania, King became highly interested in the teachings of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi and David Thoreau. David Thoreau put forward the idea of Civil disobedience that piqued Kings interest. Later in 1963, as described above, Martin Luther King was imprisoned due to his belief in the Non - Violent direct action. Gandhi inspired King to fight violence with non-violence. The famous quote, An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind1 by Gandhi shows us that through violence, not all conflicts can be solved. This is the reason why King adopted measures such as boycotting and protesting, instead of using violence and thinking irrationally. King proved this by introducing integration in the American society.

To conclude, Martin Luther King was a legend in American History, he still is. His aim to have an integrated America was fulfilled. His, I have a dream speech inspired thousands of people and the impact he left on society inspires people even today. He worked towards this aim of removing racism, injustice and segregation by protesting and going to Birmingham city jail to show everyone what he believed in. The Montgomery bus boycott was another example of the measure he took to reach his goal of improving the lives of the coloured people in the American society. His belief in Jesus and Gandhi also helped him succeed in his task. He inspired several teenagers to stand up for themselves by encouraging them and raising their spirits to believe in themselves. This is how he managed to resolve the problems that existed in American society through his belief in God and himself.

ENDNOTES

1 Racism in the Late 1950s in the US: https://prezi.com/undbmggmexrx/racism-in-the-late-1950s-in-the-us/ 2 Racial segregation in the United states http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racial_segregation_in_the_United_States3 Racism in the Late 1950s in the US: https://prezi.com/undbmggmexrx/racism-in-the-late-1950s-in-the-us/4 The letter form Birmingham Jail http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/documentsentry/annotated_letter_from_birmingham/5 Letter from Birmingham Jailhttp://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html6 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/24/i-have-a-dream-speech-social-critique_n_3806742.html7 http://www.presentationmagazine.com/analysis-of-martin-luther-kings-i-have-a-dream-speech-8059.htm8 References and allusions in the I have a dream speech http://www.bessettepitney.net/2013/08/references-and-allusions-in-i-have.html9 Huffington Post on I have a dream speech http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/24/i-have-a-dream-speech-social-critique_n_3806742.html10 Martin Luther King Jr. http://aenet.esuhsd.org/citizenship_lessons/connie/mlk_q.html11 Quote investigator, An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind.http://quoteinvestigator.com/2010/12/27/eye-for-eye-blind/

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