Martin Luther King believed in Gandhi's philosophy of nonviolence and also shared

his firm convictions in Christ's teachings. King's endeavor to bring equal rights to

African-Americans is based on his view that his dream is based on peace and harmony.

King believed that nonviolence was the only viable solution to widespread

discrimination against African-Americans. The impact of Gandhi's philosophy of

nonviolence on King's movement for the freedom of African-Americans is based on the

elements of nonviolence that King adopted for himself and his followers. In the letter he

wrote from Birmingharm Jail, he encouraged his followers to be actively engaged in

nonviolence. In that letter, he outlines different reasons for his followers to promote

nonviolence as a means of opposing the status quo and paving the way for change. I

will attempt to demonstrate the elements of nonviolence that Martin Luther King

describes in the letter he wrote from Birmingham Jail.

The history of nonviolence plays an important role in understanding events leading

up to Martin Luther King's endeavor to end discrimination against African-Americans

and help usher in a new age of freedom. In the letter he wrote, he argues that

nonviolence is the only means of resolving the issues of racial discrimination and

injustice. He argues that there are four steps towards successfully executing a campaign

of nonviolence against racial discrimination against African-Americans: "In any

nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps: collection of the facts to determine
whether injustices exist; negotiation; self purification; and direct action. We have gone

through all these steps in Birmingham. There can be no gainsaying the fact that racial

injustice engulfs this community. Birmingham is probably the most thoroughly

segregated city in the United States. Its ugly record of brutality is widely known...On

the basis of these conditions, Negro leaders sought to negotiate with the city fathers.

But the latter consistently refused to engage in good faith negotiation" (MLK 1).

He argues that in order to bring about social change and freedom, one has to

differentiate between justice and injustice. He argues that a society that deprives people

of their god-given rights is an unjust society, and that in order to determine if a law is

just, one must see that it gives equal rights to all. His argument with regards to St.

Augustine illustrates that a just law is based on conformity to the law of God rather than

racial discrimination: "Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust

laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that "an unjust law is no law at all."Now, what

is the difference between the two? How does one determine whether a law is just or

unjust? A just law is a man made code that squares with the moral law or the law of

God" (MLK: Letter From Birmingham Jail 1). He also refers to St. Thomas Aquinas in

order to illustrate how a just law is based on God's law, which reinforces the

fundamental freedoms of every person: "An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony

with the moral law. To put it in the terms of St. Thomas Aquinas: An unjust law is a

human law that is not rooted in eternal law and natural law. Any law that uplifts human

personality is just. Any law that degrades human personality is unjust" (MLK 1). King

outlines the method of direct action in order to illustrate the importance of negotiating

as a means of addressing a major issue that is regularly ignored: "You may well ask:
"Why direct action? Why sit ins, marches and so forth? Isn't negotiation a better path?"

You are quite right in calling for negotiation. Indeed, this is the very purpose of direct

action. Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension

that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the

issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored" (MLK 1).

King contends that nonviolent direct action causes social awareness on a broad scale.

He argues that this social awareness would allow whites to understand the detrimental

effects of institutionalized racism in creating a peaceful and harmonious society:

I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that law and order exist for the
purpose of establishing justice and that when they fail in this purpose they become the
dangerously structured dams that block the flow of social progress. I had hoped that the
white moderate would understand that the present tension in the South is a necessary
phase of the transition from an obnoxious negative peace, in which the Negro passively
accepted his unjust plight, to a substantive and positive peace, in which all men will
respect the dignity and worth of human personality. (MLK 1)

The elements of nonviolence that he describes his letter are based on his faith in God

and more importantly Ghadhi's application of nonviolence in relation to Christ's

teachings. King attended a seminary that helped him focus on finding a solution to the

growing problem of discrimination. King's adoption of nonviolent resistance was

heavily influenced by Gandhi's militant nonviolence, which was a means of bring

stability without any act of violence. Although King was intrigued by Gandhi's

nonviolent approach, he believed that nonviolent resistance in the United States was a

difficult goal to achieve.

The letter epitomizes the struggles that defined his mission to bring about justice and

equality. King relied on his Christian convinctions to further his goal of ending

widespread discrimination against African-Americans. His religious convinctions and

his social and political endeavors were intertwined as his Christian faith dictated the

measures that African-Americans had to take in order to realize the dream of equal

rights. King viewed nonviolence was a valid method against injustice and

discrimination. King believed that nonviolence was aimed at uprooting the foundation

of injustice that prevented African-Americans from having the same freedoms as

whites. In his letter, he argues that oppression must end in order for freedom to become

a reality for victims of injustice: "Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever.

The yearning for freedom eventually manifests itself, and that is what has happened to

the American Negro. Something within has reminded him of his birthright of freedom,

and something without has reminded him that it can be gained" (MLK 1). His mission

is based not only on establishing freedom for African-Americans, but for all the races

who are victims of inequality and institionalized racism: "Consciously or

unconsciously, he has been caught up by the Zeitgeist...the United States Negro is

moving with a sense of great urgency toward the promised land of racial justice. If one

recognizes this vital urge that has engulfed the Negro community, one should readily

understand why public demonstrations are taking place" (MLK 1). King's mission to

free African-Americans from the constraints of racially discriminatory society still

resonotes today.

As the leading proponent of human rights for African-Americans, Martin Luther King

established himself as a perennial icon for freedom, democracy, and human rights. His

adoption of Gandhi's nonviolent resistance allowed African-Americans to gain social

and political freedoms. Today, King's dream remains alive and an inspiration to

millions. His letter outlines the basic steps with which nonviolence achieves its goal:
establishing freedom and equality among African-Americans. The four elements of

nonviolence that he describes are a vital component of maintaining a just society that

protects the rights of all.

Works Cited
African Studies Center: "Letter From Birmingham Jail (King Jr.)"

http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html