Introduction The history that has shaped and scarred American society as a whole has molded this nation of people into what it is today, but it is often forgotten. A specifically potent time of that history was the Civil Rights Movement of the twentieth century, and a particular pioneer of that movement, Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK). Dr. King was, and arguably still remains, to be America’s most significant champion of equality. The scars and victories of the Civil Rights Movement still find breath throughout these United States in the present day with much thanks to Reverend King for heralding the gospel of freedom to the northern most city of America, to the southern most plantations. His impact, though often found in the most subtle of places, is profoundly present today through monuments, holidays, and even street names across the country. Dr. King embodied what it looks like to be a people that stand upon this nation’s foundational notion that “all men are created equal”, and he pursued this with his life. Though the fight for civil rights and equality for all people is still a raging battle today--more than many know--Martin Luther King Jr. was the first to step out onto this path with the weapon of nonviolence and raising the rallying fist for freedom through brotherly love. This struggle for equality is still an ache today, but Dr. King left a foundation to build upon, to look back to, and to inform the way this nation exercises what it was originally created for: freedom. King’s impact in this is not forgotten.
Historical Context Slavery in America The roots of slavery in America go back far into what seems now like the distant past, but if the real effects of slavery on today’s day were more intimately known, this past would not seem so far behind. The tension between races escalated and built for hundreds of years, with pivotal points around particular moments like the institution of slavery, the case of Dred Scott, and the Civil War--all culminating in the unrestrained movement for civil rights in the mind-late twentieth century. For decades African Americans had been marginalized and considered substandard in value to whites, and this was validated by law and life. The actions of hate, discrimination, and shame that matched this mentality is etched into the books of history and the souls of fellow African American brothers and sisters. Beginning in the mid seventeenth century, though, black submission to this kind of treatment started to crack, and the desire for justice began to boil over (Int. Civil Rights Center and Museum). African Americans rallied together, conjuring up enough courage to oppose their tyrannical slave masters--and later, even just the broad southern white population in general--to stand for and insist their constitutional rights be given them; not just in law, but also in life. Even after the abolition of slavery in the U.S., African Americans were still treated horrifically, as though the law had changed nothing between the races. There was still much to be fought for, and the peak of the Civil Rights Movement--igniting in 1954--made that clear (Int. CRCM). With tactics of anger and protest, though, American would likely have just fallen into another Civil War, but Martin Luther King Jr. pioneered the strategy of equality via nonviolence, stood for this conviction for the sake of Americans; he lost his life for it. Dr. King forever changed the shape of American society through his leadership in the Civil Rights Movement, and his impact is not forgotten today.
The Civil Rights Movement and Martin Luther King Dr. King vividly expresses the gruesome extents of the treatment of blacks by whites particularly in 1950s and 60s America, and their urgency in fighting for equality, in his Letter from Birmingham Jail: “when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim... when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six year old daughter why she can't go to the public amusement park that has just been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children...when... your wife and mother are never given the respected title "Mrs."; when you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance, never quite knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of ‘nobodiness’ -- then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait.” (King, 2).
This was the treatment of African Americans even after the national outlawing of slavery; this is the treatment that justifies the boiling desire for justice. This desire pierced the very heart of Martin Luther King Jr., who pioneered the next decade to be for equality and nonviolence--a battle strategy that was not for the “defeat the opponent but to win his friendship and understanding.” (King, “The Power of Nonviolence” 1). Dr. King was intimately aware that “the aftermath of violence is bitterness... [but] the aftermath of nonviolence is reconciliation and the creation of a beloved community”, and he dedicated his life for this cause (“The Power of Nonviolence” 1). King saw the nation in an entirely different perspective than essentially the majority of society throughout the 1950s and 60s, but he did not just sit as a spectator to the injustice he saw among a people--a people supposed to be united as a nation--he did something about it; he acted. Dr. King led the battle for justice and brotherly love with the weapons of voice and walk; he championed equality through nonviolence means, and willingly stepped into harms way for the good of a nation; for the good of this nation today. Martin Luther King Jr. trailed the path to equality and unity in America, and his footprints are still evident today.
Rhetorical Case Study The Leader of Nonviolent Resistance and The Civil Rights Movement Decades and decades of injustice festered under the surface of American society and it was time that something be done about it--something big. African Americans all around the nation began to rally together and protest for natural rights, but they needed a leader; and they found just that in Dr. King. King achieved a pH.D. from Boston University, was a reverend of a Montgomery, Alabama baptist church, and eventually became the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, but those aspects alone did not just deem him the leader of the Civil Rights Movement--King “simply responded to the call of the people for a spokesman.” (King, “Stride Toward Freedom” 101, “Letter from Birmingham Jail” 1). As the movement gained momentum and King was immersed in this topic of protest and nonviolence as “more than a method to which [he] gave intellectual assent; it [gradually] became a commitment to a way of life.” (“Stride Toward Freedom” 101). This was the kind of leader that was needed to pave the way through this kind of emotion filled, deeply personal, yet significantly national issue, leading a people for the sake of freedom--someone who did not simply have an interest in justice, but was willing to dedicate their life to the liberation of the oppressed and the genuine equality of all men. King himself understood the ache of his black brothers and sisters, as he himself “came perilously close to resenting all white people.” (King, “Stride Toward Freedom” 90). This is quite a statement from the very man that is often considered today as the champion of equality, but his understanding of the philosophy of nonviolence shaped his mindset in this endeavor. King outlines six essential elements to this philosophy: “first, it must be emphasized that nonviolent resistance is not a method for cowards; it does resist.” (102). Nonviolence is not merely a tactic to be used by those who know they do not possess the power or means to fight physically, it is in itself an entirely different means of resistance, and does indeed resist. The man engaging in nonviolent resistance may not be “physically aggressive towards his opponent, [but] his mind and his emotions are always active, constantly seeking to persuade his opponent that he is wrong.” (102). This was the first essential aspect of King outlined for the sake of peaceful protests. The second aspect to be noted about the philosophy of nonviolence is that “it does not seek to defeat or humiliate the opponent, but to win his friendship and understanding” (102). This aspect sets these particular means of protest and resistance apart from any other. Rarely are fiercely opposing forces considered in a light of maintaining compassion and grace for one another, but rather thought of in a manner that assumes their desire to obliterate the other. King knew this would lead to the obliteration of our nation, and there would be no unity, much less justice or equality to be found in that act, thus the adoption of nonviolent protest. Thirdly, King led the Civil Rights Movement with “the attack [being] directed at forces of evil rather than against persons who happen to be doing the evil.” (102). This is key in considering the previous two elements of nonviolent resistance, as there is to be no resistance if evil is not confronted by what is good, and there is no friendship to be found in enmity--rooted in aggression--between persons. This smoothly instigates the fourth aspect that characterizes nonviolent resistance which is a “willingness to accept suffering without retaliation” (103). This principle in itself seems abundantly civil, and easily right, in regards to seeking justice for the oppressed in a group of people; the self control and willingness necessary in order to receive this undue suffering almost puts the desire for equality in the flesh. Martin Luther King Jr. wore this flesh and so did those who locked arms with him as they walked city to city. Woven into this flesh and “at the center of nonviolence stands the principle of love”, which is essentially the fifth element that was necessary to the nonviolent resistance that Reverend King heralded across the nation. These peaceful protests were to avoid physical turmoil, but also internal turmoil. Bitterness and hate must be fought as equally powerful evils as injustice, and King made this known--to those fighting for rights with him, and to those withholding them. If considered holistically, it is from this center of love that friendship and understanding may be achieved, evil may be adequately attacked, and hope may be kept alive. Lastly, King notes that the final aspect that characterizes nonviolence is that “it is based on the conviction that the universe is on the side of justice. [Therefore], the believer in nonviolence has deep faith in the future” (106). With no hope that the future is bright, or at least could be bright, this movement for civil rights would likely have been much less of a movement, and much more of an idea. Dr. King was persistent to remind the nation and himself of this great dream “that one day this Nation will rise up, [and] live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." (King, “I Have A Dream...” 4). It was by these principles of nonviolence and love that Dr. King led this movement for Civil Rights in the 1950s and 60s, and it is because of these wise means that he is so remembered today. This was the dream that Martin Luther King Jr. hoped for all of his life, but he never lived to see it become more of a reality.
The Death and Memorials of MLK King’s life was cut short of seeing his dream fulfilled, but this dream has been remembered by its echo through the hearts of generations of Americans, and resulting memorials that are present today. He “had led the civil rights movement since the mid-1950s, using a combination of powerful words and non-violent tactics such as sit-ins, boycotts and protest marches”, but on April 4, 1968 King’s life was suddenly ended by a bullet from an opposers sniper (History.com). Though he died at the young age of 39, his “I Have A Dream...” speech is widely known amongst all ages throughout American society nearly half a century after one of the final deliveries by Dr. King, on the mall in Washington, D.C. Peter C. Meyers of the Heritage Foundation notes that “Fifty years later, King’s signature speech and his overall career of eloquent activism must be judged an enormous success. The ‘Dream’ speech itself is commonly regarded as a treasure in our rhetorical heritage, unrivaled among 20th-century American speeches.” (Meyers, 1). This was just one of King’s speeches--one action for the freedom and equality of all people over the course of years and years. While he as a man is not to be exalted, his impact is to be regarded, as it was significant--given by its prevalence in this day and age. It would be hard to consider even the mentality of this nation today without his thoroughly recorded and proclaimed philosophy of nonviolence; it is difficult to imagine America today--wrestling with many of the same, yet developed, issues of the past--without the example of MLK; it is hard to imagine what other movement in America would conjure up the battle plan of peaceful protests and nonviolent resistance as a force of change for the good of all people and a country, without the precedent of Dr. King and the fighters along side him for Civil Rights. He is no rescuer, but he is an example of American history to look back to that can serve as a reminder of the roots of this nation: freedom. His dream, message, and the means by which he sought those out are remembered today by many memorials--not to mention all the lessons referencing this movement throughout American History classes across the nation. All across the nation, hints and reminders of Martin Luther King are speckled, but they likely do not receive the consideration they deserve. Derek H. Alderman of Southern Cultures Journal notes that “The naming of streets after slain Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. is the most widespread example of African American efforts to rewrite the landscape of southern commemoration” (Alderman, 88). With the multitude of roads throughout the south that bear the name of Martin Luther King, his movement and efforts for Civil Rights--or even simply his journey alone--society would be hard pressed to forget his impact. This remembrance and symbolism throughout the south in the twenty-first century proves the dramatic change that Dr. King instigated pertaining to the nature of the southern states. More specifically, streets represent a kind of connectivity that essentially knit the nation (Alderman, 94). Alderman quotes the St. Petersburg Times and states “Renaming a street is a uniquely appropriate way to honor King. Streets unite diverse neighborhoods. They touch all ages, all races, all economic levels, and the resident and the visitor equally. They link people and places that otherwise would remain insular” (Alderman 94). This fact brings to light the immense significance that MLK bears on the unity of this nation. Dr. King lived, fought, marched, and wrote all towards the end of winning his fellow national brothers’ and sisters’ friendship, and he lost his life for this cause. Therefore, these streets that are speckled all throughout the southern United States echo the message of the gospel of freedom that King marched across the nation. They remind this American society of this history that is too often forgotten.
Conclusion The battle for Civil Rights was violent, rampant with beatings and bloodshed, though the weapons of Dr. King and his fellow army were brotherly love and understanding. King’s philosophy of nonviolence has impacted the unity of America today, without which it would be difficult to imagine any kind of peaceful resistance--that actually proved to resist. Celebrated, remembered, and grieved by the fighters for civil rights, MLK and the justice he stood for are recalled by a January holiday, and a significant amount of roads that knit the south together. These roads bear his name to remember what they were called and stood for before miles in them were marched for the sake of freedom; for the sake of a nation, a people. These are the very roads that weave together our neighborhoods, cities, towns, states, and country and that unite the diversity that is the American people--but we are one people. The very scars of our nation’s history are found in the cracks of the pavement that run wild all over the continent, reminding all who travel on them of the many steps that were taken to at least bring our country to this point. Martin Luther King Jr. and the movement for civil rights has forever changed this nation, but may the remembrance of these years make beautiful the history and roads that tie our country together--the history that is so often forgotten.
Works Cited Derek H. Alderman. “Martin Luther King Jr. Streets in the South: A New Landscape of Memory.” Southern Cultures, Volume 14, Number 3, pp. 88-105. King Jr, Martin Luther. “I Have A Dream...”. (1963): 1-6. King Jr, Martin Luther. "Letter from Birmingham jail." Liberating faith: Religious voices for justice, peace, and ecological wisdom (2012): 177-187. King Jr, Martin Luther. “Stride toward freedom: The Montgomery story.” Vol. 1. Beacon Press, 2010. King Jr, Martin Luther. "The power of non-violence." (1957). “Martin Luther King Jr Assassination.” History.com. 2010. http://www.history.com/topics/black- history/martin-luther-king-jr-assassination Peter C. Myers. “Martin Luther King, Jr., and the American Dream.”, March 28, 2014, p. 1-21.