Race/Martin Luther King Jr.
Gabrielle Hyrny
Background
The summer of 1963 was a time of revolution, the season when 19 million African Americans demanded payment of the century-old promissory note, the Emancipation Proclamation[1]. This time in American history was unique and held conditions that allowed for the long fight for emancipation to become a reality. Racism, as the discrimination based on color, has deep roots in America. The first true racism was that of the Jewish because this represented the stigmatization of an entire ethnic group on the basis of deficiencies that could not ever be eradicated[2]. However, reasons for African American discrimination started as a result of religious reasons, not color of skin.
The slave trade was already in place, and blacks were traded and sold as slaves to Europeans because they were “non-Christian heathens” that were easy to treat cruelly.[3] The differences in religion justified African slavery; the Curse of Ham refers to an incident in the Bible in the book of Genesis, where Ham, the son of Noah, is cursed for wronging him. It is believed that Canaan, Ham’s son, is the ancestor of all Africans and the punishment of the curse was blackening of the skin.[4] This could explain the origins of the modern racism that emerged in the 18th century that involved the word ‘race’ as having stable and unchangeable characteristics.
The Enlightenment opened up the secular and scientific reasons for racism based on color when works were published about the origins of man. Writers and scientists began to rank the races, either consciously or unconsciously, that had emerged out of a single ancestor; with that came a sense of dominance for whites that led to the racism known today.[5] Blacks were then associated with being an unprogressive race that was incapable of joining the modern world and they were discriminated against even further. This in turn led to the lower socioeconomic status of African Americans and the cycle progressed.[6]
The decade preceding King’s arrival into the political scene allowed him to have the large impact that he had. During World War II, blacks began to move north into the cities, increased urbanization changed the labor patterns, and the outlawing of the white primary in 1944 increased the black electorate nearly tenfold.[7] This set the stage for King to pursue his dream of social justice. By combining his ability as a commanding speaker with the organization skills of his colleagues; what started as a protest for improved bus service turned into a struggle for human dignity[8].
Turning Point
Martin Luther King, Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta Georgia. He grew up in a Christian household, became ordained as a Baptist minister, and graduated from Morehouse College in 1948. He then went on to earn his PhD in systematic theology. Martin Luther then married Coretta Scott and began an activist ministry at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Alabama. As head of the Montgomery Improvement Associated, King directed the mass boycott on segregated buses that led in the Supreme Court’s ruling of this to be unconstitutional. In 1958 his book, Stride toward Freedom was published and King’s prominence in the Civil Rights Movement rose to new levels.
Most notably, King became president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which led campaigns in Birmingham and Selma, Alabama. The result of these was the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Rights Act of 1965. While in Birmingham, Martin Luther King, Jr. was arrested and in jail wrote “Letter from Birmingham City Jail” which was the most influential document for this movement. [9] In this letter, King describes the injustices occurring and reasons behind the demonstrations taking place in Birmingham. Laying out the four steps of nonviolent campaigns, “collection of the facts to determine whether in justices exist; negotiation; self purification; and direct action” he justifies the actions taking place.[10]
His influence peaked at the March on Washington in 1963, when King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. This is one of the most universally known and referenced speeches in history. King was able to captivate and motivate masses of people because of his incredible public speaking skills. He could speak off the cuff and be in the moment, making him an inspiring speaker.[11] This ability was perhaps the reason he became the public leader of such a large movement. Martin Luther King, Jr. was able to translate the demands of the oppressed to a broad, white audience that had the political power to crush resistance to black equality. King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, but shortly thereafter his support began to fall as the black power movement gained popularity and he openly opposed the Vietnam War. Near the end of his life, Dr. King expanded his battle to fight for human rights including the areas of economics and social class.[12] However, before his plans could come to fruition Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis on April 4, 1963. James Earl Ray was arrested for the murder[13].
Effect
Martin Luther King, Jr. had a vision of brotherhood and nonviolent social change. His greatness came from his ability to elevate the cause of civil rights and the cause of America at the same time. He purified the values already instilled in Americans and used them to make change.[14] It is these changes that cause Dr. King to be a turning point. The civil rights movement was a culmination of all past reformers that started, although not exclusively, with Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War. It was under King’s influence that the final ending of legal discrimination and segregation of people based on color was achieved.
At the 88th Congress of the United States, the Civil Rights Act was enacted in 1964. This act was created “to enforce the constitutional right to vote, to confer jurisdiction upon the district courts of the United States to provide injunctive relief against discrimination in public accommodations”[15]. Title I called for equal rights when voting (no literacy tests or omissions), Title III called for the desegregation of public facilities, Title IV addressed the segregation in education, and Title VII outlawed discrimination in the workplace allowing for equal opportunity.[16] Without King there surely would have been a civil rights movement, but with him it took on an inspirational and moral character that was beyond any other social reform movement.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a central character to the civil rights movement but that is not to deny the significance of all the anonymous men and women who toiled for freedom. His presence at the beginning stimulated the fight for equality and his death quickened its deterioration.[17] During his lifetime, he was able to instill in Americans the belief that racism is immoral and there is no true basis for its existence. The realization that racism goes beyond the political is apparent and his aim was to conquer racism in all aspects of life. The quest for true black emancipation was achieved, in part, as a result of the ambitions of Martin Luther King, Jr.
[1] Sundquist, Eric. King’s Dream. 2009. p.69.
[2] Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. 2002. p.33.
[3] Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. 2002. p.30-31.
[4] Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. 2002. p.43.
[5] Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. 2002. p.56-57.
[6] Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. 2002. p.94.
[7] Lawson, Steven. “Martin Luther King, JR., and the Civil Rights Movement”. 1987. p.247.
[8] Lawson, Steven. “Martin Luther King, JR., and the Civil Rights Movement”. 1987. p.248.
[9] “King, Martin Luther, Jr.”. 2010.
[10] Martin Luther King, Jr. Letter from the Birmingham Jail.1963.
[11] Sundquist, Eric. King’s Dream. 2009. p.14.
[12] Lawson, Steven. “Martin Luther King, JR., and the Civil Rights Movement”. 1987. p.249.
[13] “King, Martin Luther, Jr.”. 2010.
[14] Sundquist, Eric. King’s Dream.2009. p.10.
[15] The Civil Rights Act of 1964. p.1
[16] The Civil Rights Act of 1964. p.1-8.
[17] Lawson, Steven. “Martin Luther King, JR., and the Civil Rights Movement”. 1987. P.
Bibliography
Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. Princeton University Press. Princeton. 2002. p.26-94.
“King, Martin Luther, Jr.”. Encyclopedia of American Studies. Johns Hopkins University Press. Baltimore. 2010. Credo Reference.
Lawson, Steven. “Martin Luther King, JR., and the Civil Rights Movement”. Georgia Historical Society. 1987. p.243-260.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Letter from the Birmingham Jail. Atlantic Monthly. Boston. 1963.
Sundquist, Eric. King’s Dream. Eric J. Sundquist. United States of America. 2009. p.3-69.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964. United States Congress. 1964.
Gabrielle Hyrny
Background
The summer of 1963 was a time of revolution, the season when 19 million African Americans demanded payment of the century-old promissory note, the Emancipation Proclamation[1]. This time in American history was unique and held conditions that allowed for the long fight for emancipation to become a reality. Racism, as the discrimination based on color, has deep roots in America. The first true racism was that of the Jewish because this represented the stigmatization of an entire ethnic group on the basis of deficiencies that could not ever be eradicated[2]. However, reasons for African American discrimination started as a result of religious reasons, not color of skin.
The slave trade was already in place, and blacks were traded and sold as slaves to Europeans because they were “non-Christian heathens” that were easy to treat cruelly.[3] The differences in religion justified African slavery; the Curse of Ham refers to an incident in the Bible in the book of Genesis, where Ham, the son of Noah, is cursed for wronging him. It is believed that Canaan, Ham’s son, is the ancestor of all Africans and the punishment of the curse was blackening of the skin.[4] This could explain the origins of the modern racism that emerged in the 18th century that involved the word ‘race’ as having stable and unchangeable characteristics.
The Enlightenment opened up the secular and scientific reasons for racism based on color when works were published about the origins of man. Writers and scientists began to rank the races, either consciously or unconsciously, that had emerged out of a single ancestor; with that came a sense of dominance for whites that led to the racism known today.[5] Blacks were then associated with being an unprogressive race that was incapable of joining the modern world and they were discriminated against even further. This in turn led to the lower socioeconomic status of African Americans and the cycle progressed.[6]
The decade preceding King’s arrival into the political scene allowed him to have the large impact that he had. During World War II, blacks began to move north into the cities, increased urbanization changed the labor patterns, and the outlawing of the white primary in 1944 increased the black electorate nearly tenfold.[7] This set the stage for King to pursue his dream of social justice. By combining his ability as a commanding speaker with the organization skills of his colleagues; what started as a protest for improved bus service turned into a struggle for human dignity[8].
Turning Point
Martin Luther King, Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta Georgia. He grew up in a Christian household, became ordained as a Baptist minister, and graduated from Morehouse College in 1948. He then went on to earn his PhD in systematic theology. Martin Luther then married Coretta Scott and began an activist ministry at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Alabama. As head of the Montgomery Improvement Associated, King directed the mass boycott on segregated buses that led in the Supreme Court’s ruling of this to be unconstitutional. In 1958 his book, Stride toward Freedom was published and King’s prominence in the Civil Rights Movement rose to new levels.
Most notably, King became president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which led campaigns in Birmingham and Selma, Alabama. The result of these was the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Rights Act of 1965. While in Birmingham, Martin Luther King, Jr. was arrested and in jail wrote “Letter from Birmingham City Jail” which was the most influential document for this movement. [9] In this letter, King describes the injustices occurring and reasons behind the demonstrations taking place in Birmingham. Laying out the four steps of nonviolent campaigns, “collection of the facts to determine whether in justices exist; negotiation; self purification; and direct action” he justifies the actions taking place.[10]
His influence peaked at the March on Washington in 1963, when King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. This is one of the most universally known and referenced speeches in history. King was able to captivate and motivate masses of people because of his incredible public speaking skills. He could speak off the cuff and be in the moment, making him an inspiring speaker.[11] This ability was perhaps the reason he became the public leader of such a large movement. Martin Luther King, Jr. was able to translate the demands of the oppressed to a broad, white audience that had the political power to crush resistance to black equality. King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, but shortly thereafter his support began to fall as the black power movement gained popularity and he openly opposed the Vietnam War. Near the end of his life, Dr. King expanded his battle to fight for human rights including the areas of economics and social class.[12] However, before his plans could come to fruition Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis on April 4, 1963. James Earl Ray was arrested for the murder[13].
Effect
Martin Luther King, Jr. had a vision of brotherhood and nonviolent social change. His greatness came from his ability to elevate the cause of civil rights and the cause of America at the same time. He purified the values already instilled in Americans and used them to make change.[14] It is these changes that cause Dr. King to be a turning point. The civil rights movement was a culmination of all past reformers that started, although not exclusively, with Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War. It was under King’s influence that the final ending of legal discrimination and segregation of people based on color was achieved.
At the 88th Congress of the United States, the Civil Rights Act was enacted in 1964. This act was created “to enforce the constitutional right to vote, to confer jurisdiction upon the district courts of the United States to provide injunctive relief against discrimination in public accommodations”[15]. Title I called for equal rights when voting (no literacy tests or omissions), Title III called for the desegregation of public facilities, Title IV addressed the segregation in education, and Title VII outlawed discrimination in the workplace allowing for equal opportunity.[16] Without King there surely would have been a civil rights movement, but with him it took on an inspirational and moral character that was beyond any other social reform movement.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a central character to the civil rights movement but that is not to deny the significance of all the anonymous men and women who toiled for freedom. His presence at the beginning stimulated the fight for equality and his death quickened its deterioration.[17] During his lifetime, he was able to instill in Americans the belief that racism is immoral and there is no true basis for its existence. The realization that racism goes beyond the political is apparent and his aim was to conquer racism in all aspects of life. The quest for true black emancipation was achieved, in part, as a result of the ambitions of Martin Luther King, Jr.
[1] Sundquist, Eric. King’s Dream. 2009. p.69.
[2] Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. 2002. p.33.
[3] Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. 2002. p.30-31.
[4] Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. 2002. p.43.
[5] Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. 2002. p.56-57.
[6] Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. 2002. p.94.
[7] Lawson, Steven. “Martin Luther King, JR., and the Civil Rights Movement”. 1987. p.247.
[8] Lawson, Steven. “Martin Luther King, JR., and the Civil Rights Movement”. 1987. p.248.
[9] “King, Martin Luther, Jr.”. 2010.
[10] Martin Luther King, Jr. Letter from the Birmingham Jail.1963.
[11] Sundquist, Eric. King’s Dream. 2009. p.14.
[12] Lawson, Steven. “Martin Luther King, JR., and the Civil Rights Movement”. 1987. p.249.
[13] “King, Martin Luther, Jr.”. 2010.
[14] Sundquist, Eric. King’s Dream.2009. p.10.
[15] The Civil Rights Act of 1964. p.1
[16] The Civil Rights Act of 1964. p.1-8.
[17] Lawson, Steven. “Martin Luther King, JR., and the Civil Rights Movement”. 1987. P.
Bibliography
Fredrickson, George. Racism: A Short History. Princeton University Press. Princeton. 2002. p.26-94.
“King, Martin Luther, Jr.”. Encyclopedia of American Studies. Johns Hopkins University Press. Baltimore. 2010. Credo Reference.
Lawson, Steven. “Martin Luther King, JR., and the Civil Rights Movement”. Georgia Historical Society. 1987. p.243-260.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Letter from the Birmingham Jail. Atlantic Monthly. Boston. 1963.
Sundquist, Eric. King’s Dream. Eric J. Sundquist. United States of America. 2009. p.3-69.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964. United States Congress. 1964.