What Is The Argument In Letter From Birmingham Jail

Almost sixty years ago from today, while incarcerated in Birmingham City Jail, the famous Martin Luther King Jr. composed a letter intended for a group of clergymen in the area. The lengthy letter, widely known as the “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, was written in response to a brief, but rather bold criticism of King and his fellow civil rights activists. Although the uninformed clergymen had good intentions of “keeping the peace,” King sought to shed light on the superficial critique of the civil rights movement. His letter is filled with deeply justified refutations of the clergymen’s claims, yet one profound instance of his strong argument concisely targets the issue at hand. MLKJ perceptively states “it is an historical fact that privileged
groups seldom give up their privileges voluntary. Individuals may see the moral light and voluntarily give up their unjust posture, but…groups tend to be more immoral than individuals” (paragraph 12). Although this claim may be broad at first glance, King reaffirms the major parts of his statement throughout the letter. In taking a closer look at the first sentence of the quote, it is clear that King makes a passionate, but still very astute assumption based on experience and things that have happened in the past.
He may seem quick to claim “it is an historical fact that privileged groups seldom give up their privileges voluntarily” (paragraph 12), but he makes sure to batter the clergymen with repetitive examples showing why this statement is indeed fact. To look back on the course of history regarding human rights in America, anyone can see his point. To clarify what he considers to be ignored history he says “We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed” (paragraph 13). He continues on with more evidence: “For years now I have heard the word ‘Wait!’ It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This ‘Wait’ has almost always meant ‘Never.’ We must come to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that ‘justice too long delayed is justice denied’” (paragraph 12). In these few quotes, King justifies his assumption by experience that no one can contradict. He then solidifies his point when he sheds light on the fact that the black community has “waited more than 340 years for our constitutional and God-given rights” (paragraph 13). With this evidence to back him up, King expresses the necessity for what he and his associates are doing because of the basic principle he states in the first
sentence of his claim. Transitioning into the next part of MLKJ’s quote, he clarifies that although “seldom” give in to equality, there is a small exception.
He is careful to include that “Individuals may see the moral light and voluntarily give up their unjust posture,” (paragraph 12). To avoid further criticism he includes and acknowledges the progress, however small, that is being made. However he emphasizes that “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” (paragraph 4). Using the common ground between King and the clergymen, he shows that while religious persons may disagree with segregation and the friction it has caused, their silence is as condemning as the racists who seek out violence against the
blacks:
I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro’s great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizens Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to ‘order’ than to justice...Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. (paragraph 23)

King comes to the conclusion that because of the inaction of those in Birmingham who do agree morally and ethically with him, “outsider” action is and has been absolutely necessary. “Moreover, I am cognizant of the interrelatedness of all communities and states. I cannot sit idly by in Atlanta and not be concerned about what happens in Birmingham.” (paragraph 3). While those who have seen the “moral light” do exist in Birmingham, they have done nothing. This piece of his claim functions to further his argument that history has taught the oppressed to speak out in the absence of those who silently disagree with inequality. Building from his two previously solidified statements, King writes the final portion of the original claim: “groups tend to be more immoral than individuals.” (paragraph 12). Though this may seem like a brief observation of clan behavior, his evidence to support it shows how perceptive and factual it actually is. Even throughout his explanation of the types of “injustices” that are thriving in Birmingham, the opposition to his cause takes the form of collective persons. He deliberately uses more personal nouns to describe the black community who are being singled out and targeted, while using collective nouns that take the form of broad entities to describe the unimaginable behavior they execute. One of the most effective uses of this method is found in the fourteenth paragraph when King writes:
But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim; when you have seen hate-filled policemen curse, kick, and even kill your black brothers and sisters; when you see the vast majority of your twenty million Negro bothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society, (paragraph 14)
His use of words like “mobs,” “policemen,” and “society” to show the dehumanized nature of the groups that are immoral when gathering in hatred. In contrast, describing the innocent who face affliction with personal, narrow, and more singular nouns like “mothers and fathers” and “sisters and brothers,” instead of family or siblings, he is able to show that the individual is more upright. Although it may seem like a simple use of strategic writing, this intentional setup for his word choice directly reflects the nature of the oppressors and proves, without a doubt, that “groups tend to be more immoral than individuals.” (paragraph 12). Undoubtedly, King’s claim is right in tune with truth and fact. In response to the clergymen, his letter overall, completely and entirely covers all aspects of the criticism he receives. And, although his famous correspondence is packed full of rich strategic elements to argue and shut down the opposition, a single sentence holds the meaning of his entire purpose. He repays criticism with a thought out and more astute critique of not only the clergymen, but those who are in agreement with their views