An Analysis Of Martin Luther King's Letter From Birmingham Jail

“Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther king is a response letter written to the eight clergyman who had criticized King for the method of protest he uses. King was arrested in Birmingham, Alabama in April 1963 and wrote the letter in his small cell after reading a newspaper in which the clergyman had themselves published criticize king’s method of protesting since he was not from the state of Alabama. King replies to the clergymen and call them “men of genuine good will”, to show his peaceful manner. The clergy man feel that king is not and should not interfere with what is happening in the south. King however, answers them by arguing why African Americans in Birmingham will and should participate in the movement, famously quoting that “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” (233). He explains that he doesn’t need to be from
In this case, King writes this letter because of his presence in Birmingham and his presence in Birmingham is because, “Injustice is here” (232). As a response to the eight clergymen, he compares his mission to what the Apostle Paul did and says that “like Paul, I must constantly respond to the Macedonian call for aid” (King 233). Here, king explains that he is responding to the call of Birmingham where he believes there is injustice. Additionally, king describes his purpose by saying that “the purpose of our direct- action program is to create a situation so crisis-packed that it will inevitably open the doors to negotiation” (King 235). King directly explains that the purpose of the organization is to create a situation in which the voice of the people will be heard and a negotiation with the government could be done. King is very straight forward and clear in pointing out and employing his reasoning of purpose to why he is in Birmingham and what he plans to do while