Martin Luther King's 'Letter From Birmingham Jail'

What are the four basic steps of nonviolent direct action?

Collection of the facts to determine whether injustices exists; negotiation; self purification; and direct action

How does King answer to the charge of being an outsider?

Dr. King claim that he have honor to serve as the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference

What does King mean by "constructive nonviolent tension" and how does he define its goal?

Dr. King means that protests are creating tension between the races

What are Kings reasons for being in Birmingham?

Dr. King replied that he was invited here to Birmingham.

Why does King welcome the label extremist?

Dr. King said the nation and the world are in dire need of creative extremists.

Can you think of another historical (local, national, global) example of nonviolent protest which followed these steps?

Equal right and pay for both men and women

In the above segment King describes examples of "negative peace". What does he mean by this?

Even if both side get no negativities from the peace, one side disagrees

King describes two types of law, just and unjust, how does he define each?

King describes two types of law, just and unjust, how does he define each?

Breaking an unjust law lovingly? Could you get to this state? Why does he think this would be an expression of respect for the law?

Most of the laws during the 1900's had no respect for African-Americans and women. Which I think that all human beings are suppose to be treated equally is an unjust law.

Why do citizens choose to be silent about a law they may find unjust? What are the social and legal consequences for civil disobedience?

Most people in the world never think for looking for unjust laws, but they always follow just laws. The citizens rather be quiet because they are afraid of what happen to them if they disobey the just laws.

What does King warn will happen if the Negro Community is not allowed to demonstrate through nonviolent actions? Is King threatening them?

No, Dr. King is not treating them, but try to change the law nonviolently and show the whites that he is arrested but not doing anything wrong

What are the effects of segregation?

Segregation treated people very unfairly, for example, like women who get lower pays than men because they are born female, or treated as an outsider because they are born as a low class

What does this mean today for each of us living in United States?

That anyone who stand on the land of United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its boundary

What does this mean for individuals who have ignored the issues of Birmingham?

The individuals are ignoring the problems that can spread state to state

Why did King and others decide to delay their actions?

They realize they were the victims of the promise

Do you need to obey a law that you did not participate in creating? Do you need to live by a law you did not participate in making? Residents in a country, should they obey laws they did not participate in creating?

You can choose to follow or not follow a law. If you choose to obey a law, you won't get beat up nor arrested by the government. If you choose not to follow the law, you will get beat up by people and making other people who also want to change the law, to be afraid to get beat up like you, but for most of the time, you're trying to get yourself killed by the government. Dr. King is choose not to follow the laws made by government to change the law for the good of the future for all people.