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Dr Martin Luther King Jr Contribution to Civil Rights Activism

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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  Contribution to Civil Rights Activism

INTRODUCTION

A.  The United States has come a long way when it comes to civil rights activism.

B.  There are many people who fought for the rights of the oppressed from 1950 to the late 1960s as the rights of the Black people in the US were not respected before then.

C.  Events such as the civil strife ended the enslavement of the Black people but it did not end prejudice as black individuals kept on enduring the consequences of racial segregation: violence and bias in social, economic and political aspects.

D.  Thesis Statement

Martin Luther King approaches to civil rights of the black people were better than those of Malcom X and produced more positive solutions, especially inintegration and equality.

BODY

A. Bus Boycott in Montgomery

1. Martin Luther King Jr. Was a strong believer and advocate of social equality.

2. In 1955, in Montgomery, King Jr. was a notable organizer of the initiative that encouraged people to avoid boarding buses which did not give black people opportunity to sit in front rows; an initiative that arose after Rosa Parks became adamant and refused to leave her sit for a white person (Leahy, 2014).

3.  Dr. King and his friends were imprisoned but eventually the demonstration forced the authorities to revise their regulations and African-Americans were allowed to sit in the seats of their choice while aboard the buses.

4. To the contrary, Malcom X believed in using violence to resolve abrasive issues

5. The bus boycott gave Martin Luther a lot of popularity and made hima popular civil activist.

Peaceful Social Change

1. Despite being met by brutality and excessive force, Martin Luther always insisted on non-violence.

2.  For instance, on 30th January, 1956, Dr. King's residence was bombed and in response, he and his followers chose to pray against brutal treatment (Leahy, 2014).

3. Although Malcom X also championed for the rights of black, he never believed in aspects such nonviolent social change and his militant ideologies could have escalated the problems that black people were facing(Cone, 2001).

4. Therefore, King Jr.'speaceful approach became a fundamental model for black people success against social injustice in disruptive moments.

Change through Letters and Protests

1. Martin Luther King Jr. organized a massive marches that advocated for equal rights, especially in places of work and learning institutions.

2. He, for instance, held protest march in Washington, DC with more than 200,000 participants in 1963, and also helped over 1000 African American sanitation workers from Memphis protest over low wages and untenable working conditions in 1968.

3. Additionally, Dr. King crafted letters detailing his reasons behind non-violence means, for instance his 1963 Birmingham Jail Letter. Comparably, Malcom X letters were majorly centered on religion (Baldwin, Burrow &Fairclough, 2013).

4. Interestingly, Malcom X claims that non-violent protests, specifically, march on Washington just served to calm black people briefly and afterwards the white people returned to doing things the old way (Sean, (April 3 2018). "

5. However, after the 1963 Washington DC march, many Americans started piling pressure on President Lyndon B. Johnson to use his influence and help bring reforms through Congress.

6. As such, Martin Luther King Jr. was able to achieve much more through his non-violent means such as letters, peaceful protest, marches,and boycotts.

Speeches and Sermons

1.  Dr. King used speech as a priceless tool to highlight some of the most fundamental issues that required urgent address.

2. Towards 1960, he initiated a Christian Leadership Forum as a channel to preach inspirational, hopeful messages that focused on peace to America and beyond (Baldwin, Burrow &Fairclough, 2013).

3. His "I have A Dream"speech also used statements from the United States Constitution and the Bible to emphasize on critical issues that required urgent address. It emphasizedthat hate cannot drive out hate, darkness cannot drive out darkness, and love should reign supreme in all circumstances, a message thatmagnified his goals and desired approach of seeking justice for the black community.

4. King Jr. preferred method as accentuated in his speechesand sermons and which Malcom X referred to as a circus has, years later, become the touchstone of social activism across the United States.

 Black Civil Rights Activism

1.  Martin Luther King Jr.'s black people's rights initiatives lasted for 13 years.

2. Like Malcom X, his main objective was to eliminate racial segregation but King Jr.'s movement delved in broad areas, such as employment, education, public transport, and voting (Baldwin, Burrow & Fairclough, 2013).

3. Civil disobedience and nonviolent protest during King Jr.'s era resulted to a lot of disruptions forcing the government to act and institute measures to end segregation.

4. Some of the benefits that followed included voting rights in 1965, Civil Rights legislation in 1964, fair housing in 1968, and national and immigration services.

CONCLUSION

Summary of Main Points

Dr. King is undoubtedly one of the greatest heroes that ever lived. Both Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcom X did a lot to ensure that black people received their rights as American citizens:respect, dignity, equality, and freedom,. However, the former advocated for love and peace, and had high moral standards that enabled him and his followers to stay calm despite violence directed to them.

Restating the Thesis

Martin Luther King approaches to civil rights of the black people were better than those of Malcom X and produced more positive solutions than conflicts, proving that love conquers all things. King's ideologies were founded on the basis of love and respect, whereas Malcom X tough principles did not give room for negotiations and respect.


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