Quotes From The Grapes Of Wrath By Dr. Martin Luther King

Chapter 6 Quote: “His son had pledged himself to become a demonstrator. The father forbade his son to participate. ‘Daddy’ the boy said, ‘I don’t want to disobey you, but I have made my pledge. If you try to keep me home, I will sneak off. If you think I deserve to be punished for that, I’ll just have to take the punishment. I’m not doing this only because I want to be free. I’m doing it also because I want freedom for you and Mama, and I want it to come before you die” (87).
This quote highlights how young people are the future, as they no longer want to remain silent in order to liberate themselves and their families. Young people fighting in the movement was the wisest decision, as for the first time in the civil-rights movement, young people were able to practice the Gandhian principle of
filling up the jails.
Young people were looking toward the social progress of the nation, not only for themselves, but for their people. They are not afraid as they are only doing what is morally right, as even little children are responding to what they want as freedom. In this chapter, Dr. King describes four major problems that need to be resolved: desegregation of lunch counters, rest rooms, fitting rooms, drinking fountains and department stores, upgrading and hiring of Negroes, dropping of charges against jailed demonstrators, and creating a biracial committee for desegregation in other areas. These requests were proposed to businessmen, because if they negotiated, it was easier to break down the rigid structure of the white society. The businessmen realized that the black population was persistent and they negotiated within 90 days after signing for desegregation of public facilities, 60 days after signing for upgrading and employment, and agreement
for bonds for the jailed within two weeks after signing to prevent any further demonstrations and protests. However, the businessmen were threatened by the white population and they returned to their dominance shortly after the negotiations. However, Dr. King’s purpose and message within this chapter, Black and White Together was that the white people and the black people need to work together in order for any social progress to be made. The black population has been continuously ignored by the white population, but Dr. King still had faith and hope for future progress, being able to remain strong during the bombings in Atlanta near his loved ones and the Board of education expelling students. However, Dr. King was able to get Supreme Court to rule Bull Connor out of office, once and for all and return students back into schools. Financial support was found from leaders, athletes, ministers, entertainers, and ordinary citizens. Unifying black and white is an ongoing process, but the young people dedicated in fighting this injustice is a start for social progress.