MLK Letter from Birmingham Jail

According to Dr. King, does direct action hinder negotiation?

Direct action was designed to force negotiation. So no it does not hinder negotiation but promotes and starts it

Describe the circumstances that lead up to King's nonviolent direct action approach in Birmingham.

A court in Alabama ordered King to sustain from protesting the in just treatment against African Americans in 1963. King disregarded this however and continued to protest and wound up in jail. He then writes a letter while in jail to a local newspaper explaining the reasons he continued to protest. In said letter he makes reference on Saint Augustine, saying that "an unjust law is no law at all".

Why is King disappointed with the church leaders upon his arrival to Birmingham?

King is disappointed because they conform to the status quo and refuse to change or speak out against injustice.

How is King viewed by fellow clergymen (church leaders)? How does he feel about being viewed this way?

The clergyman view King as violent and thinks his nonviolent tactics are against the law. King feels that African Americans have achieved very little through political channels and that the steps he took towards equality were necessary.

Explain, in detail, King's reaction to the advice "wait" and "give us time to act".

King reacted poorly to this advice. King understood that this movement would not happen over night but he wanted people to be motivated and want it to happen as quick as possible.

Describe the four basic steps for a nonviolent campaign, as outlined by King.

Fact finding-determines. Whether injust exsits, negotiation-agreements trying to resolve injustice without protesting, self purification-cleanses violent attitudes for nonviolent ones, and direct action-reaching goals

Dr. King describes what a just laws look like. Additionally, he explains at length some ways in which laws can be unjust. Using King's description of just vs. unjust law, create a "just law rubric" or "just law checklist". ( Be sure to examine what it means for a law to be just "on it's face but not in application")

He describes just law as any law that goes in harmony with moral/God's law. Anything against this is unjst.

Explain King's question "Is organized religion too inextricably bound to the status quo to save our nation and world?" Though he poses this as a question, he is making a statement. What is he claiming about organized religion? In what way is this criticism still relevant today?

He is asking if organized religion allows for any change to save our nation from the injustice it faces today. He is making a statement through this rhetoric question that he believes there is no room to move from the status quo in the eyes of organized religion. This criticism is still relevant because the church today still does not budge from the status quo and still practice century old views.

King is more disappointed with the white moderate than with the KKK... please explain this phenomenon. How could King be more upset with moderate whites than violent extremists like clansmen?

King is more upset with white moderates because at least the KKK know and admit what they believe in where as the white moderates claim to just simply not care.

Explain King's belief about the interconnectedness of communities all across the United States? What does it mean to be interconnected? Do you agree with this concept?

King talks about how the injustice of one city or town can destroy another. I agree with this because in todays age the use of social media puts ideas everywhere and one example of injustice could alter peace.

King faced criticism for being in Birmingham as an outsider. Explain this criticism, and his response to it (his rationale for being there).

King was criticized because he was boycotting and fighting with the citizens from Birmingham although he was not from there. He explains in his letter that he will fight for all peoples who face unfair treatment.

King refers to the holocaust to explain that people are morally obligated to act against unjust laws. Why does he use the holocaust as an example? What connections does he make? Consider the social/political context in the U.S at the time the letter is written.

Since the people in the holocaust also faced segregation like in the Civil Rights movement this connects these two. He uses the holocaust as an example to appeal to the readers sense of emotion and show how harshly the blacks are being treated and result in people hopefully understanding and agreeing with them.