Martin Luther King Jr. was an influential leader during the Civil Rights movement. His powerful speeches are burned into people’s minds, even if they were not alive during this time period, and he influenced great change and progress with his words. One of the most important texts from this time period is an open letter he wrote, simply titled “Letter from Birmingham Jail”. This letter brought up pressing matters of police brutality, unjust courts, cruel acts against black people, and the importance of peaceful protests. By bringing up these important injustices, Martin Luther King Jr. inspired many, and this letter became responsible for strengthening a peaceful, yet powerful revolution against the common racial injustices African Americans faced all over the country.

African Americans in Alabama started the fight for their basic rights right after slavery ended in 1865. In the 1950s, segregation was a given in essentially every state, there were segregated restaurants, schools, and public bathrooms and transportation. Birmingham, Alabama was what Dr. King said in his letter was the “most thoroughly segregated state in the United States”. College students in Alabama organized sit ins, resulting in nine black teens at Alabama State University to be expelled. After this, thousands of students rallied to show support for those who were punished. During the bus segregation, black men and women would have to pay the bus fare at the front and then board the bus at the back. Whenever the white section in the front would fill up, it was expected that African Americans in the next row would surrender their seat to the white person. However, in 1955, Rosa Parks bravely refused to give up her seat to a white person. This resulted in her being dragged off the bus, arrested, and then fined. This incident enraged the black community and a one-day bus boycott was arranged. Over 30,000 African Americans supported this boycott and walked instead of using the buses. Civil Rights leaders began to organize more boycotts and protests and recruited the help of Martin Luther King Jr. The one-day boycott eventually turned into a yearlong event; their resolve stayed strong, despite the long walks to and from work and the violence they faced from white people. When the Freedom Riders came into Alabama, they were met with violent, brutal hatred from racist whites. Almost two hundred men in Anniston, Alabama attacked the first bus and then firebombed it. Following this, another group of men violently beat a group of Freedom Riders when the bus pulled into the station in Birmingham. In Montgomery, the police refused to protect the activists and allowed a mob to attack them. Alabama has a history of brutality against African Americans, which makes it unsurprising that Martin Luther King Jr. would focus his efforts on this state.

Martin Luther King Jr. was elected president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which was an organization designed to appoint leaders for the Civil Rights Movement, in 1957 and thus was responsible for leading peaceful sit ins and protests. In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. was at the front of multiple of these nonviolent acts of protest, most which happened to be in Birmingham, Alabama, since it was considered the most segregated city in the country. On April 12, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested in Birmingham for leading large protests and violating the anti-protest junction. He was thrown into solitary confinement and was refused the right to call his wife or lawyers. This is when he wrote the famous letter, “Letter from Birmingham Jail”.  The purpose of this letter was to make the underlying racial issues and circumstances known to those across the country, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote out his calm, collected argument, clearly stating the reasoning behind their community’s actions and urging everyone, in particular the clergymen, to open their eyes to the injustices and act with love, rather than hate. The reasoning behind the non-violent protests are to create tension in order to force citizens and leaders to confront the issues they refuse to acknowledge. The tension Dr. King is trying to build between the two races is not to further deteriorate the relations between them, but instead his purpose is to dramatize the issue, in order to make it dire enough that it will force the door to negotiation open. In his letter he states the facts about the things the black people have faced due to the color of their skin. He talks about unjust treatment of the courts, unsolved bombing of African American homes and churches, humiliating signs in store windows, police brutality, lynchings, and lack of basic human respect, such as always being referred to as “nigger” or “boy”. The letter calls out white moderates for sitting by and allowing these injustices to continue, he calls them out on valuing order over justice. Martin Luther King Jr. gives concrete examples of the promises that were broken, the crude signs in the store windows that they were promised would be taken down if they did not march in protest. He backs up the actions his followers and himself took, stating that they addressed the situation beforehand, held workshops on non-violent protests, and attempted to negotiate with leaders who would refuse them. This letter blatantly calls out citizens for their disgusting actions – whether they participated in these cruel acts or merely stood by and let it happen – and it informs those around the country of the true nature of the treatment that is especially heinous in Alabama. 

Change did not come immediately after Martin Luther King Jr.'s letter was published. It caught the attention of many, and it renewed the spirits of those who were already fighting for justice, but it wasn't until the events following that more people began to rally. Two weeks after his release from jail, more than 1000 young children opted out of going to school, and instead participated in the Children's Crusade to fight for integration and equality. Birmingham commissioner of safety reacted by sending the police dogs out and ordering the troops to spray the young protestors with fire hoses. This, however, back fired since these cruel acts were broadcasted on television and many Americans were horrified by this footage. Birmingham had started to turn chaotic, and because of this, local officials had no choice but to meet with Dr. King and other leaders to negotiate and settle the issues. The attention that Martin Luther King Jr. brought to Birmingham prompted President Kennedy to write a civil rights bill. In order to show the support for the bill, there was a March on Washington, more than 250,000 people of all races and genders came together to listen to MLK Jr. give his famous speech, "I Have A Dream".  The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was signed in July of 1964 by President Lyndon B. Johnson. This bill guaranteed that black men and women were allowed in all public facilities, outlawing segregation. A year later, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was also passed. This law prohibited illegal legislation such as literacy tests and poll taxes to prevent people from their basic right to vote. 

Martin Luther King Jr. sparked a revolution of peace with his famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail”. In a well-written, powerful letter he opened the eyes of Americans and showed the country the cruel nature of the injustices African Americans faced in Alabama, particularly, during this time period. This letter was a major turning point in the Civil Rights Movement since it helped gain the support of all different kinds of people, of all races. It was a major factor in uniting the country against the hatred that existed, it helped people understand the importance of fighting back with love and strength, not violence and cruelty. Martin Luther King Jr. stated clearly the intent of those who were rallying against the injustice they were facing, making it blatant that their intent was not to put themselves above white men and women, but instead to finally make them equal. This movement was not one out of hatred or bad intentions, it was created out of hope and determination for a better future. 
