StMU Research Scholars

Featuring Scholarly Research, Writing, and Media at St. Mary’s University

April 14, 2017

Martin Luther King Jr.: The Civil Rights Movement

Martin Luther King Jr. was a highly influential figure during the Civil Rights Movement and proved to be the catalyst in helping the movement become as successful as it was. The Civil Rights Movement started due to decades of discrimination, segregation, and oppression of African-Americans in the United States, specifically in the deep south. African-Americans knew they deserved equal rights to everyone else in America, and so decided to start a movement, which became one of the most significant and notable in American history.

The Civil Rights Movement took over thirty years to have any real success and featured the influence of several key figures. King was the most well-known influence on the movement, as he led it in the role of president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). The SCLC was formed with the intention of reclaiming the spirit of America with nonviolent tactics. Taking its inspiration for freedom from black churches, the SCLC started with the hope of supporting one another in the fight for equality.1 The initial event that propelled the movement into play was Rosa Parks’ arrest. On December 1, 1955, Parks refused to give up her seat at the front of the bus to a white man, and was arrested. At the time, there were segregated sections on buses for white passengers and for black passengers, so in a time of racial tension, Parks’ refusal caused a stir in the Montgomery community. Her arrest attracted the attention of many, and resulted in a bus boycott from the black community in Montgomery.2

Rosa Parks with King | 1954 | Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

A leaflet written by Jo Ann Robinson helps to further our understanding of this boycott. The leaflet was a major statement made by the black community, which was sick of being treated the way they were by white society. The leaflet encouraged black people to not ride the bus “to work, to school, or any place,” highlighting the danger of public transport for black people at the time.3 The rejection of the city’s buses resulted in King’s national recognition as being the representative leader of the movement, and helped set his mold of nonviolent and community-orientated tactics for the movement. The boycott lasted over a year, with King not only leading it, but also ending it: he was among the first passengers to ride a bus again in December 1956, and this event proved to be the real beginning of the Civil Rights Movement. After the boycott came to an end, Parks carried on her work for civil rights, and often supported King in his work.4

Although the Montgomery Bus Boycott was eventually successful, and the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the desegregation of Montgomery buses, there were many threats and incidents during that year directly targeting King. With his newfound recognition, King bore the brunt of both the support, and, of course, the criticism and threats as well. He was often on the receiving end of threatening phone calls, and his house was fire bombed while he was giving a speech at a meeting for the bus boycott. Luckily, King’s wife and child were unharmed, but this did not prevent a group of angry black men, who were furious at what had happened, from gathering outside King’s house, looking to avenge the situation.5 That was when King began to emphasize the importance of nonviolent protest. He addressed the crowd in a calm and harmonious voice:

“We are not advocating violence. We want to love our enemies. I want you to love our enemies. Be good to them. This is what we must live by. We must meet hate with love.”6 

King was under the impression that the Christian foundation of love, working with Mahatma Gandhi’s method of nonviolence, was one of the biggest assets to oppressed people looking to fight through their struggle for freedom.7 King studied Gandhi and took a lot from him, including his stress on love and nonviolence, which gave King “the method for social reform that I had been seeking.”8 King thought that there must be new ways of solving conflicts with violence, and that nonviolence was the right tactic for fighting conflict: he highlighted that war and violent protests were very uncontrollable and they were usually not worth what they were trying to achieve. The best solution, in King’s eyes, was to protest in peace, so that the protesters could display their unhappiness but without being violent or causing harm to others.

Martin Luther King Jr Speaks against Vietnam War | 1967 | Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

This ideal was incredibly important to King. It was a mentality that he insisted upon throughout the movement. King did not want to fall to the level of the racists and people that were oppressing the black community all over America. A few years later, after founding the SCLC, and writing “Stride Toward Freedom,” which focused on the bus boycott, King visited India to study nonviolence and civil disobedience, and to learn more about Gandhi, and to help develop his own personal beliefs to guide his conduct of the movement.9

King in Birmingham Jail Cell | April 1963 | Courtesy of Flickr

Despite the nonviolent protests, King was still arrested on various occasions. In 1963, King was arrested and imprisoned while taking part in anti-segregation demonstrations in Birmingham. In this case, King was arrested for breaking Alabama’s law against “mass public demonstrations.” This resulted in eight Birmingham clergy members criticizing the campaign, branding it “unwise and untimely.” They called upon “both our white and Negro citizenry to observe the principles of law and order and common sense.”10 This became the occasion for King’s famous “Letter from Birmingham City Jail.” King’s distinguished letter was written primarily in reaction to the local religious leaders’ criticism of the campaign, in which he made sure to point out that the letter would have been shorter if he “had been writing from a comfortable desk” instead of stuck in a small jail cell where he was able to spend a long time alone with his thoughts, and had plenty of time to pray in depth.11

The focus of King’s letter was on questioning the clergy’s claim that the African American community was being impatient and that the campaign was being “extreme.” To that, King wrote “For years now, I have heard the word ‘Wait!’…. This ‘Wait’ has almost always meant ‘Never.’”12. King goes on to argue that when you are facing becoming a “nobody” and are constantly being looked down upon by the rest of the community, it becomes very hard to wait; People wanted to see a change, so they acted upon it. King also mentioned that he believed the clergymen were “of genuine good will,” meaning that their criticisms were worthy of a response, considering that King was under constant scrutiny and of course not able to respond to every person that criticized him.13 King’s letter is one of the most famous writings of the Civil Rights Movement, and helped the campaign take big steps forward.

As influential as the letter was the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom of August 1963, the high point of the movement. The March on Washington gained attention from people from all over the country. 200,000 people showed up in support of King and the March. At the event there were several speakers who spoke on equality and civil rights for African Americans, but King’s “I Have a Dream” speech still stands out as the anthem of the entire movement:

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a 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.”
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of “interposition” and “nullification” — one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; “and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.”

His speech, which is now iconic and known around the world, made a lasting impression, one that arguably contributed to President Lyndon Johnson passing both the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.14

King was a man of his word: a man who stuck to his morals and who had become the spokesperson for the movement. People looked to him for answers and for his leadership, belief, and other fine qualities aiding the success of the movement. Under his leadership, the Civil Rights Movement was hugely successful and forced changes that still resonate today. King will be remembered as one of the most influential figures in history for his efforts to gain equality for all.

  1. Enyclopedia Britannica, November 2004, s.v., “Southern Christian Leadership Conference,” by the Editors of Encyclopedia Brittanica.
  2.  New World Encyclopedia, April 2014, s.v. “Rosa Parks,” by New World Encyclopedia contributors.
  3. Jo Ann Robinson, “Don’t Ride the Bus,” (2 December 1955).
  4.  New World Encylopedia, April 2014, s.v., “Rosa Parks,” by New World Encyclopedia contributors.
  5.  Georgia Encyclopedia, October 2003, s.v., ” Martin Luther King Jr. 1929 – 1968,” by John A. Kirk.
  6. Michael Buchanan, “January 30, 1956, Martin Luther King Jr’s Home Bombed in Montgomery, Alabama – Today in Crime History,” Reasonable Doubt, (29 January 2012).
  7. Martin Luther King Jr., “Foreword to the Power of Nonviolence,” (31 December 1959).
  8. Martin Luther King Jr., “Foreword to the Power of Nonviolence,” (31 December 1959).
  9.  Georgia Encyclopedia, October 2003, s.v., ” Martin Luther King Jr. 1929 – 1968,” by John A. Kirk.
  10. Martin Luther King Jr., “A Letter from Birmingham Jail,” (16 April 1963).
  11. Martin Luther King Jr., “A Letter from Birmingham Jail,” (16 April 1963).
  12. Martin Luther King Jr., “A Letter from Birmingham Jail,” (16 April 1963).
  13. Martin Luther King Jr., “A Letter from Birmingham Jail,” (16 April 1963); Georgia Encyclopedia, October 2003, s.v., “Martin Luther King Jr. 1929 – 1968,” by John A. Kirk.
  14.  Encyclopedia Britannica, August 2016, s.v., “March on Washington,” by the Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica.

Tags from the story

Civil Rights Movement

I Have a Dream

Martin Luther King

Recent Comments

Sienna Guerra

Ever since I was a kid, I would love to hear the story of Martin Luther King Jr. He is not only a determined man, but he is dedicated to the justice of people of all races. I like this article because it shows that leaders that we read and hear about today could not have gotten to where they are today without being guided by another leader. Leaders then gain followers and teach and mold them into being more leaders that one day all may do good.

reply

30/08/2018

10:06 am

Jennifer Salas

I enjoyed reading this article because it was so informative. Martin Luther King Jr. has always been an idol of mine. I admire everything he’s done out of selflessness, it takes a lot of courage to go against the norms and he did it with so much passion. I love how he didn’t want anyone to result in violence no matter how tough it must of been to turn the other cheek. I also admire how so many people believed in him, and stood behind him no matter how hard it got. He will always be known as one of the main leaders of the civil rights movement and important figure in history.

reply

09/09/2018

10:06 am

Vanessa Sanchez

Martin Luther King Jr. I have heard about his gentleman ever since elementary. He is honestly such an motivation. He is a motivation in todays world I imagine at the time that he was around doing things possible. He fought for equal rights without him maybe things could possibly be the same. There was many others who also fought for equality but in my opinion Martin Luther Kings Jr. was the main head for all these changes to happen. He fought even tough he was aware his life could possibly be on the line.

reply

20/02/2019

10:06 am

Noah Wesolowski

Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the greatest civil right activist of his time. Not only was he inspiring his people during the civil rights movement with peaceful marches and some of his most famous speeches like the one in Washington and his letter he wrote in jail. He is still taught in schools today because of the way he wrote his speeches.

reply

24/02/2019

10:06 am

Ruben Basaldu

Everyone should be equal no matter what size, shape, color, etc. We are all human and we all deserve to be treated with respect and that is Martin Luther King Jr wanted. He truly was a great person and a great leader in his own right. I think that this article does a great job of showing how MLK was during the time of the civil rights movement. He is the definition of fight for what you believe in even though he was non-violent ironically. Great article about an even greater person.

reply

01/03/2019

10:06 am

Addie Piatz

Martin Luther King Jr’s story has always been one of my favorites to read about and learn about. He really shows how one man can make all the difference for our country. All the things he had to go through to finally get the outcome he had been working for for the most part. I was really sad about the way that he died but i am glad that he lived.

reply

29/09/2019

10:06 am

Rahni Hingoranee

Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the most inspirational figures in American history. I enjoyed this article because it gives more insight into how he really came to be the hero that he was. MLK’s idea of non-violence is so important to the Civil Rights Movement. The article is well-written about an American hero. He was willing to put his life on the line for the good of people.

reply

29/09/2019

10:06 am

Maya Simon

Martin Luther King Jr is such an inspiration to today’s society. He will forever be remembered for his great activism and work in his community. He was such a peaceful activist and a great spokesperson. King was a great leader he is one of the main civil rights activists who made a difference during that time period. The assassination of Dr. King was the worst thing to happen at that time he was such a wholesome person and just wanted to make a change in the world. Racial discrimination is still going on in the world today and it’ll never end.

reply

14/08/2020

10:06 am

Natalia Ramirez

Martin Luther King is truly someone to admire. He is an important historical figure that should be remembered. We are where we are today because of important figures like him. You did an excellent job of telling a story about Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights Movement. I liked how you included the video of his famous “I Have A Dream Speech”.

reply

14/02/2022

10:06 am

dakota

i love how martin Luther king cared about the equal rights for all. showing us violence is not the way to solve issues or racism and i stand by everything that he state in the article. we need to recognize the difference that martin made on our society and when doing that we may be able to see our wrong doings and help fix our mistakes.

reply

31/08/2022

10:06 am

1 2 3

Leave a Reply