Summer has arrived and that means it is time for MY summer assignment, tackling King's Letter from Birmingham Jail.
I have tried to set up most of the context and background in my previous posts so try to look those over if you need background information on this moment since it is not as famous as his speech a few months later. Yet this response is so eloquently written and deals with some of the complexities and contradictions that I find inherent in our American identity. When does protesting America's faults become unAmerican? What signifies acceptable and unacceptable protest? How do we deal with those that wish to upset the status quo, especially when YOU inherently disagree with their assertion in the first place? There is that famous quote, usually incorrectly attributed to Voltaire but actually by a biographer of his Evelyn Beatrice Hall: "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." A phrase like that is easy to SAY but much harder to practice. How do we deal with those we despise? How do we confront issues that are not even agreed upon as issues? How does democracy survive when EVERYONE, including radicals and extremists have an unfiltered voice? Thomas Jefferson may have written the political philosophy of America in 1776, but putting it into practice and maintaining it was the difficult task King takes on in this letter. I certainly respect him for the degree of difficulty in this challenge and, in truth, I think no one has answered these questions better. That does not mean it is a perfect response or that it provides a solution to every problem posed here, but it does take on most of them. You can tell King had been sort of boiling over to this moment from the first paragraph in his response. My Dear Fellow Clergymen: While confined here in the Birmingham city jail, I came across your recent statement calling my present activities "unwise and untimely." Seldom do I pause to answer criticism of my work and ideas. If I sought to answer all the criticisms that cross my desk, my secretaries would have little time for anything other than such correspondence in the course of the day, and I would have no time for constructive work. But since I feel that you are men of genuine good will and that your criticisms are sincerely set forth, I want to try to answer your statement in what I hope will be patient and reasonable terms. Notice the following about this opening paragraph: King is pissed off. I mean he is not subtle about it. Read how he dismisses the loads of criticism he receives and how a response to that would leave him "no time for constructive work". In other words, King is saying I see no reason trying to change the mind of a bigot. Yet he is making an exception here, and a notable one at that. Why? King says that these clergymen are "of genuine good" and "sincere". King DOES think he can change their minds, or at least let them into his world and hope they are open-minded enough to consider the argument he is about to lay forth. Open-mindness is such a key component to a democracy and yet it is often bashed by our society. "If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything" "Changing your mind makes you a flip-flopper" Just because we may not agree with others does not give us license to negate their experiences or refuse to listen. Opening up a discourse is the only way to address problems in a democratic society. That does not mean we will change our minds but we have to allow for that possibility. We have to be able to understand WHY we believe what we believe and if we need to ask other questions to get to the solution. After all, learning is more about asking the right questions than just answering questions. King sees an opportunity and decides to break with his tradition and clearly has been preparing for this moment. The following paragraphs set forth a point-by-point defense of King, the Civil Rights Movement and the role of the rebel in our society. I hope you will follow along with me as we move forward!
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