Visualizing the Pain

            Sitting in Birmingham City Jail, Martin Luther King, Jr. decided to take pen to paper. Martin Luther King was the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. When he was called upon to engage in a “nonviolent direct action program,” he agreed. A direct action plan has four steps that can be summed up in the following: determine whether any injustices are occurring, negotiate, self-purification, and direct action. It was deemed that Birmingham, in fact, was one of the most segregated cities in the United States. Cases of police brutality, home and church bombings, and unjust courts; they ran rampant throughout the city. There was an opportunity for Martin to meet with leaders of the economic community in Birmingham. Finally, a chance to negotiate. Talks occurred, promises were made, and lies were told. These negotiations had failed. Self-purification was the next step, “How can one get their point across without violence?” Step four, direct action-a nonviolent direct action. Sit-ins, marches, peaceful protests lead to negotiations having to take place. In Martin’s case, he was jailed for this.

            Throughout the letter Martin goes through a progression with his emotions and writing style. He starts of addressing his audience as understanding people, people of “good will.” He addresses his reasoning for being there and goes through why this letter needs to be written. It needs to be written so that hopefully others can realize the situation and work towards improving it. His letter then makes a shift towards anger, anger that some only pay attention to problems when the problem becomes violent. This violence defeats what Martin Luther is trying to achieve. He points out that “individuals” may give up their wrong doings and proceed to do what is morally right. On the other hand, groups are “more immoral” than the individual. His anger towards the situation leads into more of a dark undertone, he wants the reader to experience this pain and to have empathy toward it. He goes on to explain that he was always told to wait for a better time to ensue action. An interesting visualization he gives is, “[…] only to give birth to an ill-formed infant of frustration.” This helps the reader to visualize anger, but also to perceive time. He then goes on to use the word “little” on multiple occasions. This term is used to describe his daughter, but also to explain all the hardships she is now dealing with, due to segregation. Again, his letter shifts but this time it is towards human behavior. He begins to dislike parts of it, not hate it, but he sees what is truly flawed within some. He tries to have the reader understand that anger needs to be released and that having “sit-ins and freedom rides” helps to release that anger in a nonviolent way. The last time his letter shifts, it shifts to a tone of hope. That in spite of all that has happened and is going on, that there are good people. Not just good people, but a brotherhood of love and understanding.