Mr White

Religion- Martin Luther King

Mallika Jhamb

Essay 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

Mr White

Religion- Martin Luther King

Mallika Jhamb

Jim Crows Laws being enacted by children

http://reconstructionerajimcrowlaws.weebly.com
/list-of-jim-crow-laws.html

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.
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
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Mr White

Religion- Martin Luther King

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.

Mallika Jhamb
Rosa Parks arrest report
kpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/document
sentry/doc_arrest_report_for_rosa_parks/

In addition to this, on august 28th 1963, the

largest political rally for human rights took
28 August 1963
place in the United States. This rally was
Press release, SNCC Text of speech to be delivered at Lincoln Memorial
called for the Civil and Economic right for
http://mlkkpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/document
African Americans, This march is credited to
sentry/press_release_text_of_speech_to_be_delivered
pass the Civil Rights Act (1964) and the
_at_lincoln_memorial/
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
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
3

Mr White

Religion- Martin Luther King

Mallika Jhamb

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_States
3 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://mlkkpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/documentsentry/annotated_l
etter_from_birmingham/
5 Letter from Birmingham Jail
http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html
6 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/24/i-have-a-dream-speechsocial-critique_n_3806742.html
7 http://www.presentationmagazine.com/analysis-of-martin-luther-kings-ihave-a-dream-speech-8059.htm
8 References and allusions in the I have a dream speech
http://www.bessettepitney.net/2013/08/references-and-allusions-in-ihave.html
9 Huffington Post on I have a dream speech
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/24/i-have-a-dream-speech-socialcritique_n_3806742.html
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Religion- Martin Luther King

Mallika Jhamb

10 Martin Luther King Jr.

http://aenet.esuhsd.org/citizenship_lessons/connie/mlk_q.html
11 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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