Role Within the Civil Rights Movement
Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.
Within the short span of approximately 13 years, Martin Luther King Jr. revolutionised the entirety of America, bringing to it the beginnings of racial equality. With his incredible display of rhetoric and natural qualities of leadership, King ushered in a new age of enlightenment. To get his points across, he relied not on violence, but instead on other means, such as peaceful marches and civil disobedience.
King’s main trademark was his talent as a skilful orator. His first public speech took place on the day Rosa Parks was arrested, December 1, 1955. He led the Montgomery Bus Boycott, convincing almost all the black people of Montgomery to not board buses for a gruelling 382 days. Ultimately, this boycott would desegregate all the buses in Montgomery, marking one of the first major steps towards racial equality. Spurred on by this success, King and a number of other civil rights activists formed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) on January 10, 1957, with King heading the organization. He participated in a number of civil rights protests, including the sit-ins at segregated lunch counters, and wrote his famous civil rights manifesto “Letter from Birmingham Jail” on April 16, 1963.
King was also renowned for his unwavering faith within non-violent demonstrations. Influenced by his religious upbringing and inspired by the birthplace, actions, and success of Gandhi, King vowed to never resort to violence to get his message across. He instead used protest marches and speeches, and continued with his methods even while the police fought back with violence. As said by King himself: “Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction…”
On August 28, 1964, King led the March on Washington, cementing his fame as one of the most influential men within the black Civil Rights Movement. Over 200,000 people turned up, with the crowd formed from a mixture of black and white people. It was here that King delivered his epochal ‘I Have a Dream’ speech. He managed to fuse together emotions and fact, and captured in a highly passionate speech the thoughts and desires of the black people. However, King did not speak of revenge, nor did he advocate the blacks to rebel against the whites. Towards the end of his speech, Mahalia Jackson cried out: “Tell them about the dream, Martin!” Forgoing his prepared script, he spoke from the depths of his heart, and pleaded for equality, for unity, and for the abolishment of all barriers. He painted a world where both races could live side by side, in peace and harmony, with no one side superior to the other.
King’s main trademark was his talent as a skilful orator. His first public speech took place on the day Rosa Parks was arrested, December 1, 1955. He led the Montgomery Bus Boycott, convincing almost all the black people of Montgomery to not board buses for a gruelling 382 days. Ultimately, this boycott would desegregate all the buses in Montgomery, marking one of the first major steps towards racial equality. Spurred on by this success, King and a number of other civil rights activists formed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) on January 10, 1957, with King heading the organization. He participated in a number of civil rights protests, including the sit-ins at segregated lunch counters, and wrote his famous civil rights manifesto “Letter from Birmingham Jail” on April 16, 1963.
King was also renowned for his unwavering faith within non-violent demonstrations. Influenced by his religious upbringing and inspired by the birthplace, actions, and success of Gandhi, King vowed to never resort to violence to get his message across. He instead used protest marches and speeches, and continued with his methods even while the police fought back with violence. As said by King himself: “Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction…”
On August 28, 1964, King led the March on Washington, cementing his fame as one of the most influential men within the black Civil Rights Movement. Over 200,000 people turned up, with the crowd formed from a mixture of black and white people. It was here that King delivered his epochal ‘I Have a Dream’ speech. He managed to fuse together emotions and fact, and captured in a highly passionate speech the thoughts and desires of the black people. However, King did not speak of revenge, nor did he advocate the blacks to rebel against the whites. Towards the end of his speech, Mahalia Jackson cried out: “Tell them about the dream, Martin!” Forgoing his prepared script, he spoke from the depths of his heart, and pleaded for equality, for unity, and for the abolishment of all barriers. He painted a world where both races could live side by side, in peace and harmony, with no one side superior to the other.