Martin Luther King Jr. and Henry Thoreau Debate Essay Example for Free

Martin Luther king younger and enthalpy Thoreau Debate EssayFight For What is salutary A cold, snowy winter iniquity in Birmingham, Alabama one of those nights where you would rather stay inside and sit by a drive out while sipping on a cup of hot chocolate. Not everyone is doing that though, for many multitude walk in the cold on the whole bundled up. Some of the more unfortunate ones stay stranded outside in the halt weather with not nearly enough layers to keep them warm. In Birmingham, a lot of these people dwell of African Americans who cannot afford somewhere to keep warm or are Just simply denied a place to stay based on their skin color. In this day and age, segregation exists between whites and blacks. A huge issue nationwide, but when it comes to Birmingham everything is taken to a new level. To ensure the separation of whites and blacks, you can have plenty of racial signs and new(prenominal) such tactics used by the city. Although between office and Thoreau , none of these resemble an issue they both could stay warm under their nice winter Jackets, both had a place to go back home to and more importantly, one was a white man and the other a black man. Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr. both made themselves very well cognize and idolized by many.They knew severally other through a mutual friend but came into clutch when they ran into one another here in Birmingham. The segregation in Birmingham continues to get out of control with ageless bombings and killings of African American citizens, causing certain assemblys to want to take action towards reform in Birmingham. The group kn induce as the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights called upon King to help direct them in non-violent reform, while Thoreau made his trip here to witness the reforms. Thoreaus time of non-violent reform came about years in advance King take down began to participate.King actually learned Just about everything from Thoreaus writing, b ut Thoreau has no wiz of that at this very moment. What King learned from Thoreau, he put to use more than Thoreau ever did. Right now the two men share the same non-violent beliefs and want to spread the word in their own separate ways. As the two men walk down the street they engage in neighbourly small talk. But then they come across a black couple denied entry into a restaurant. Both men look at ach other in disgust. They have seen it happen hundreds of times, but each time they see it, they have the same disgustful reaction.After what they Just witnessed, the two men started to declare their opinions to each other on why they see this type of policy as a disgrace. Henry Thoreau spoke first with a scornful tone in his voice on how he cannot pry his government for allowing instances like these to occur. He continues speaking, l cannot for an instant recognize that political organization as my government which is the slaves government also (180). In response, King expresses t o Thoreau, that you cannot put the entire blame on the government even though they could reposition the laws involving segregation.But would that change how the white majority feels, especially in southern states. Those people grew up witn certain opinions ot Atrican Americans. King goes on with another strong statement, saying Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly (214). With this statement, King tries to tell Thoreau that if they cannot change how people think, then segregation will not change either. After uttering such words, King goes quiet, neither one of them saying anything to each other. Both continue walking with their eyes facing forward, trying to fgure out what they are going to say next.After a a couple of(prenominal) minutes of walking in the freezing cold with a light flurry of snow, the silence is broken. King ends this when he asks Thoreau how he plans on making a dissimilarity for racism and segregation. Thoreau does not respond remediate awa y, giving King the opportunity to answer his own question Henry, we need to make a difference here in Birmingham. If we do something here then it ay affect the whole nation. And we need to do it in a non-violent manner. He continues, In any non-violent campaign there are four basic go collection of facts to determine whether injustices exist negotiation self-purification and direct action (215). King believes that these steps will lead them to a successful reform against segregation. Thoreau agrees with King that they should reform in a non-violent way, but questions who will join forces him. He immediately states,They continue enjoying each others company, but ever since their heated discussions the two have not said one word or even batted an eye towards the other. They arrive at the footsteps of Martin Luther King Jr. s apartment where he says one final comment to end the night, Henry, we have a lesson responsibility to disobey unjust laws (218). We are nere tor a reason and that reason involves making a ditterence. So tomorrow lets get everyone in town together and move forward with this reform. Thoreau ooks at King with a blank face and continues his way.With his incomparable leadership ability, King leads a reform the next day in Birmingham. The reform in Birmingham took place in 1963, and was led by Martin Luther King Jr.. This action brought attention to the integrating efforts in the city, and during these nonviolent riots the citys police brought out dogs which attacked the civilians. They would also spray the people with high powered weewee hoses. But the reform actions demonstrated led to the government changing the city of Birminghams discrimination laws.