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Morality, Justice and Freedom: Martin Luther King's Views by Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.
Morality, Justice and Freedom: Martin Luther King’s views and the peculiar ring to them The undeniable history of the fight for freedom and human dignity is Martin Luther King’s revelation that “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” It is also clear from King’s essays that he understands that an oppressive establishment will not by itself bring about change, but it is the resolve, determination and perseverance of the marginalized and oppressed people that will invariably lead to real and concrete change for the betterment of society as a whole. King writes, “History is the long and tragic story of the fact that privileged groups seldom give up their privileges voluntarily” thus reflecting his position that change will only come about as a result of pressure being exerted on an oppressive power structure. King maintains that the oppressed must be willing and determined to break unjust laws, as he put it, in order to bring about meaningful and concrete change! He writes, “There are just laws and there are unjust laws. One has not only a legal but moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. A just law is a man-made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God and uplifts human personality. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law and degrades human personality.” King further states that “unjust laws” had the effect of de-humanizing and degrading the oppressed and consequently had to be challenged, vigorously through direct action! He writes further, “Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever. The urge for freedom will eventually come. Something within will remind them of their birthright of freedom and something without will remind them that they can gain it.” King goes on to state further that upon realizing that they can gain their freedom, an oppressed people will move with “a sense of cosmic urgency” that ultimately manifests itself in the form of direct action which as he writes, “seeks to create tension to the extent that a community that has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issues.” This kind of tension King asserts is necessary for the elevation of society to the desired “heights of understanding and brotherhood” from the “dark depths of injustice and inequity.” He goes on to further stress the fact that “condemning their actions on the premise that they precipitated violence was akin to condemning the robbed man because his possession of money precipitated the evil act of robbery.” An individual therefore reserves the right to demand and subsequently gain his basic constitutional rights by any means necessary! He also cautioned of the need for a perceived oppressive establishment to listen to the voices of “moderation” rather than dismiss them as “rabble rousers” and “outside agitators” as a failure to do so will ultimately lead to the triumph of the voices of “extremism” which would inevitably have very dire consequences for the society. The very essence of humanity and dignity is the ability and desire of an individual or group, to make sacrifices, irrespective of how grave they might be, in order to bring about meaningful and concrete change. Power is never given; it is taken by those who are willing and prepared to pay the ultimate price for it… in some cases death!
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