Summary of the “Letter From Birmingham Jail”
Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. composed this letter while he was incarcerated in Birmingham city jail. What
motivated King to write this letter was “A Call For Unity”; an article that was
written by several local ministers. This article criticized the civil rights
movement was untimely because they felt that civil rights movement will take
form in time, and should not be rushed by protests and such actions; also, the
movement was unwise because it was led by (Dr. King) extremists.
Dr. King responded by first explaining why
the civil rights movements could no longer wait. He shared how African Americans
have tried numerous other ways such as negotiating with the government
officials, but most often, they pushed away with the answers such as “give it
some time” or “I will get back to you”:
For years now I have heard the
word “Wait!” It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This
“Wait” has almost always meant “Never.” We must come to see, with one of our
distinguished jurists, that “justice too long delayed is justice denied.
Dr. King further explained that there is NEVER
a timely protest, according to those who have not suffered unduly, because they
simply do not understand the pain, and therefore, there is no rush to change.
He argued:
Perhaps it is easy for those who
have never felt the stinging darts of segregation to say, “Wait.” But when you
have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your
sisters and brothers at whim; … when you are harried by day and haunted by
night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance,
never quite knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and
outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of
“nobodiness”— then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait.
Dr. King was proud of
being called an extremist because many people throughout history who made
important changes were also called extremists. He explains:
Was not Jesus an
extremist in love? -- "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, pray
for them that despitefully use you." Was not Amos an extremist for
justice? -- "Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty
stream." Was not Paul an extremist for the gospel of Jesus Christ? --
"I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus." Was not Martin
Luther an extremist?-- "Here I stand; I can do no other so help me God."
Was not John Bunyan an extremist? -- "I will stay in jail to the end of my
days before I make a mockery of my conscience." Was not Abraham Lincoln an
extremist? -- "This nation cannot survive half slave and half free."
Was not Thomas Jefferson an extremist? -- "We hold these truths to be self-evident,
that all men are created equal." So the question is not whether we will be
extremist, but what kind of extremists we will be. Will we be extremists for
hate, or will we be extremists for love? Will we be extremists for the
preservation of injustice, or will we be extremists for the cause of justice?
Dr. king had envisioned a future society
where the color of your skin would no longer be a reason to hate or to be
judged; and he is willing to dedicate himself to do anything necessary to
achieve that dream, even if people consider him as an extremist.
There
was also another motivation, beside to respond to “A Call For Unity”, that is
to attempt to persuade the White moderates to support his cause with action. The
article “A Call For Unity” was published on a local newspaper, and Dr. King saw
this as a good opportunity to reach out to White moderates since this letter
would also be published. While Dr. King appreciates that the White moderates
agreed with his view of social justice, he was greatly disappointed with the
fact that White moderates lacked the true understanding of the situation:
I have almost
reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in
the stride toward freedom is not the White Citizens Councillor or the Ku Klux
Klanner but the white moderate who is more devoted to order than to justice;
who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive
peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says, "I agree with
you in the goal you seek, but I can't agree with your methods of direct
action"; who paternalistically feels that he can set the timetable for
another man's freedom; who lives by the myth of time; and who constantly
advises the Negro to wait until a "more convenient season." Shallow
understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute
misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more
bewildering than outright rejection.
Dr. King shared quite a few personal feelings within
this letter; he recalled:
When you
suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to
explain to your six-year-old daughter why she cannot go to the public amusement
park that has just been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in
her little eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children,
and see the depressing clouds of inferiority begin to form in her little mental
sky, and see her begin to distort her little personality by unconsciously
developing a bitterness toward white people.
He
was hoping that by showing the White moderates what he sees and feels each and
everyday they will be able to relate better, thus have more understanding why
African Americans cannot wait any longer, and must do anything they can to
change the system.
I completely agree with Dr. King’s
view on the timing of the movement. I firmly believe that if change is indeed
needed, then the time to act is now. Sure, changes take time, and we should not
over rushing it because in order to make the change permanent, people need time
to adapt; but we must not fall under the illusion of thinking the problem would
just naturally work itself out. My friend and I used to smoke cigarettes. We
both agreed that we needed to quit because it is bad for you, and it is very
expensive. He started to make plans for quitting; he wanted to wait until after
the holiday season, because work is too stressful; then he was going to wait
until after his birthday, and years later, he is still smoking a pack per day.
I went with a different route. I decided that I would only smoke after I eat,
and when I drink; then I move on to not buying any cigarettes at all, and only
smoke if people offers me one; and a year later, I stopped completely. Time
keeps moving forward no matter what; the important part is that one can either
use it constructively or destructively. I also agree with dedicating yourself
to a task to a degree where other people consider being extreme isn’t always
bad; it really depends on your goal. Dr. King pointed out that Jesus was viewed
as an extremist due to his dedication to help and love people; I got an A on a
math exam last week only because I did EVERY single practice problems in the
textbook, which was an extreme amount of work.
I also believe that Dr. King had
successfully persuade many moderates both white and non-white, and through
different time eras. I am one of the moderates that have been convinced. I have
always been pretty political; I have many ideals, and I like thinking about
them, or even debate them; but I have never really put forth any “real effort”,
and it kind of irritates me to think about this because it makes me feel like a
hypocrite or a fake. After I read this letter, I REALLY feel like a fake
idealist. The truth is many of the ideals I have is not issues that I have
complete understanding such as how the minimum wage law should be set; and in a
way, I kind of don’t care because it doesn’t directly affect me, thus I lack
the motivation and dedication to actually do more research, more planning, and
ultimately more action.
I was very glad to have read this
“Letter From Birmingham Jail” because it has taught me some important lessons.
First, I gained more perspective from the painful memories Dr. King shared, and
it hardened my motivation to strive towards a more just society. Now that I
have a motivation to make a change, I must start acting now, even just a small
step; and I will have to dedicate myself to the cause to a degree that might
seem extreme. I also need to really figure out which issue I really feel deeply
about, and gain more knowledge on the subject, then act on it. with this new
found perspective, I believe that I can and will make this world a better
place.