Fight for Freedom:

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement

A great civil rights activist once said, I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal". The Civil Rights Movement was the unrelenting fight for African American civil rights. In the capital of Alabama, during the month of December 1955, the Civil Rights Movement began with the Montgomery Bus Boycott, then continued with student sit-ins in the early 1960’s. Within the time range of forty years ago, an African American man called Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. used nonviolent tactics such as marches and speeches as a positive strategy of the Civil Rights Movement. Although Mohammad Gandhi played a large role in his theory, King’s father also taught him that violence was not the solution to problems.

Martin Luther King had many traits that contributed to his success in the Civil Rights Movement. Dr. King was a very likeable person, and was loyal to his cause. King was also a kind and generous human being. He was a person whom one could trust in a sticky situation. “Today, mere mention of his name evokes greatness, commitment, and dedication. His name is respected throughout the world, even by enemies”(Moore “Martin Luther King Jr.”). This quotation shows that Dr. King was, indeed, a great and truly remarkable person. It proves that Martin Luther King’s use of nonviolence was highly effective, because it is has caused people to admire his obligation to nonviolence, Black freedom and civil rights. “Born into Atlanta’s black upper-class in the midst of depression, King felt very few effects of the economic crisis. As the son of a popular Baptist minister, King was afforded the opportunity to have a childhood free from racial discrimination” (Moore “Martin Luther King Jr.”). This excerpt shows

Beginning in the mid-1950’s, the Civil Rights Movement was one of the largest campaign for black sovereignty in U.S. history. Throughout this period, many civil rights groups and organizations came into play, such as SNCC (Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee), CORE (Congress of Racial Equality), and the most popular and well-known party, the ever-popular NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). All of these groups supported non-violent protest. Thanks to the 1963 March on Washington, the right to vote was won in 1965 with the passing of the Voting Rights Act. “The Civil Rights Movement during the Eisenhower years, 1953 to 1961, was truly national—not merely in that it was expression of African Americans, but also in its geographical breadth”(Walters). This passage shows that the Civil Rights Movement, not only affected African Americans, but also white Americans. People used nonviolent tactics to protest, which triggered a chain reaction, in which others did the same. But one of King’s most famous speeches, which won him the Nobel Peace Prize, was spoken in Washington D.C., in 1963.

Dr. Martin Luther King’s method of nonviolence was highly effective in this fight for justice. He used several methods in his passive-aggressive fight for integrity such as speeches and marches. The most prominent speech he ever gave, was the ‘I Have A Dream Speech’, spoken at the March on Washington, in 1963. “The ‘I Have A Dream’ speech, the most inspiring of his career, etched the image of King as a dreamer indelibly on the national consciousness”(Colaiaco). The speech itself was, not only inspirational to everyone in the convention, but everyone in the world. In August of 1963, “more than 250,000 people, including over 75,000 whites, showed up in front of the Lincoln Memorial to hear march speeches”(Colaiaco). Many people believe that this day in history is, by far, the largest, and most important in Civil Rights history. “The wave of nonviolent protests throughout the summer of 1963 reached a dramatic climax with the ‘March on Washington for jobs and freedom’ on 28 August, the largest demonstration in the history of civil rights”(Colaiaco). And it was. The march won African Americans the right to vote two years later. It was the beginning of a long and perilous journey that ended with the light at the end of the tunnel, found.

In the mid-1900’s, a certain Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. used nonviolent actions such as marches and speeches as a constructive approach of the Civil Rights Movement. The Declaration of Independence stated: We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal. However, this was proved to be false. African Americans had to fight tooth and nail in their struggle for freedom and equality. In his line of work, King proved that nonviolence is the key element to success when battling for civil rights.

Nonviolence was the superlative strategy of the Civil Rights Movement.

It was not effective to use blind rage against one’s antagonists.

Work Sited Page

Baldwin, Lewis V. “Family Influences On King”

There Is A Balm In Gilead: The Cultural Roots Of Martin Luther King Jr.

© 1991

Reprinted: 2000

Colaiaco, James A. “The March on Washington: A Landmark in the

Struggle for Freedom”

Martin Luther King Jr.: Apostle of Militant Nonviolence

©1988

Moore, Leonard N. “Civil Rights Movement”

St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture

1/29/02. Luther King Jr.”

St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture

1/29/02. Ronald “Chapter 2: Peaceful Demonstrations and Radical Tactics”

Turning Points In World History

Reprinted February/March 1993