An Analysis Of Dr. Martin Luther King's Letter From A Birmingham Jail

Fifty- four years after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote, “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” and the world still fails to understand what is presented in his crucial text. It is extremely important that we as Americans realize that the events which took place in the mid-60s such as the lack of respect for African-Americans, and the hate that was shown to them, are still very relevant today. By simply turning on the television, picking up a newspaper, or tuning into a radio station, we are all still able to see examples of what Dr. King was referring to in his time. Through multiple illustrations of allusions, King illustrates to the clergymen his stance and his beliefs. Through the main themes which are thoroughly explained in this letter, America needs to apply …show more content…
Dr. King spends the majority of the latter half of the letter explaining the importance of responding to the unlawfulness of some key things. He attempts to reach out to the clergymen and connect with them on a more personal level and explain the importance of their response. Basically someone participating in an injustice is wrong, but seeing the injustice take place and not do anything about it is worse. Not responding is almost the same as giving the okay to continue on. Doing something can impact the situation in a much better way. Today we can quickly relate this with America’s increase with people not reporting bullying. USA Today explored the different ways that not reporting did more harm than just the original bullying offense. “Programs that encourage bystanders to stop bullying when they see it show promise. But asking students to work out bullying on their own – through peer mediation and forced apologies – can backfire (amp.usatoday.com). In order to see something improve back then, and now as well, everyone has to want to become the change they want to see in the