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justicepirate's review against another edition
3.0
Martin Luther King Jr. shares with the world why it is that the "Negroes" in his time fought without physically fighting for their rights through non-resistance. As someone who believes in the concept of non-resistance, I truly adored what he had to say about it. I think most people in general tend to only focus on the fact that he spoke out on equality for all in America no matter what skin color they have (civil rights issues) rather than the fact that he often spoke about how he believed living out life as Jesus and His disciples did was ultimately important to him. I wrote down many quotes from this book to keep for the future. It was great to get a glimpse into what he was like, as I had only ever heard his "I Have a Dream" speech. It made me appreciate him even more.
readsewknit's review against another edition
5.0
This is a powerful read; if "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" wasn't transformative enough in its own right, we have WHY WE CAN'T WAIT, which gives further context to the events that set up MLK Jr's famous letter and the aftermath.
This book shows the great level of planning and thought that went into these nonviolent direct actions. I highlighted countless sections and took copious notes of this slim book, as it is replete with insight and wisdom.
This book shows the great level of planning and thought that went into these nonviolent direct actions. I highlighted countless sections and took copious notes of this slim book, as it is replete with insight and wisdom.
sharlappalachia's review against another edition
5.0
I can't think of a greater piece in the American canon, nor a greater theological text of the last century, than this.
orasmis's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
lindseysparks's review against another edition
5.0
While I was aware of the history covered in this book, it's a vastly different experience reading someone's first-hand account. These were things that happened to real people less than 20 years before I was born. When he was writing this MLK didn't know what what the result would be or that he would die for the cause or eventually have a national holiday in his honor.
Random side note - at one point there is a quote of someone talking to him and the person just calls him Martin. It took me a minute to realize who that referred to because I'm so used to seeing his full name or initials. That helped him seem like an actual person and not just this larger than life figure.
One thing that struck me as I was reading was how active churches were in helping him - not just the black churches but the white ones too. Yet at the same time, Letter from a Birmingham Jail, which is included here, was written in response to a group of pastor's who felt he was going too far.
I think this book is an excellent resource on how to stage a protest. There are times that require violence, but he was able to achieve so much through non-violent means and in the process made his opponents look like the terrible people they were becuase they were the ones who turned violent. I know I've read something about how having some of those scenes shown on TV changed public opinion becuase they saw the marchers walking peacefully but being attacked by their own government.
I think it goes without saying that this was worth the read.
Random side note - at one point there is a quote of someone talking to him and the person just calls him Martin. It took me a minute to realize who that referred to because I'm so used to seeing his full name or initials. That helped him seem like an actual person and not just this larger than life figure.
One thing that struck me as I was reading was how active churches were in helping him - not just the black churches but the white ones too. Yet at the same time, Letter from a Birmingham Jail, which is included here, was written in response to a group of pastor's who felt he was going too far.
I think this book is an excellent resource on how to stage a protest. There are times that require violence, but he was able to achieve so much through non-violent means and in the process made his opponents look like the terrible people they were becuase they were the ones who turned violent. I know I've read something about how having some of those scenes shown on TV changed public opinion becuase they saw the marchers walking peacefully but being attacked by their own government.
I think it goes without saying that this was worth the read.
thurminator's review against another edition
5.0
A phenomenal book that has given me so much to think about. I initially decided to read this on MLK Jr. day about a month ago when I was enjoying my morning off from work. I had bought it a couple of weeks beforehand, and thought it would be a good idea. I am very glad I did. Dr. King has a way of putting things that leaves little room for debate. There were so many things in this book he said that struck me as being incredibly applicable to modern life in America, as unfortunate as that is. Many arguments that were heard from white people in 2020 are clearly outlined and dismantled in this book with words from Dr. King over 50 years ago.
One excellent example concerns the greatest stumbling block to equality in the US - the white moderate. It is not the outspoken racist that gets in the way of change so much as it is the person in the middle (often a "good, religious individual") who wants to maintain the status quo. I also found comments concerning the prejudice that lies at the foundation of America, and the uncomfortable denial that people seem to have with it, very relevant. The most poignant to me, and something that comes up several times in this book, was Dr. King's claims that the poverty stricken are also oppressed and shamed in this country. This was the next fight that he wanted to engage in, and we'd have been better off for it. He proposes a "Bill of Disadvantage" for both black people as well as the poor and other minorities that I wish we'd have been able to learn about in school as kids. I agree with Rev. Jesse Jackson in the afterword - this should be essential reading for every high school student. It has opened my eyes to an important part of America's history that I am always trying to understand better, but even more so, has given me a clear lens to identify and speak on problems that still exist in this country today.
Favorite Quotes:
"If he is still saying, 'Not enough', it is because he does not feel that he should be expected to be grateful for the halting and inadequate attempts of his society to catch up with the basic rights he ought to have inherited automatically, centuries ago, by virtue of his membership in the human family and his American birthright."
"It is this tangled web of prejudice from which many Americans now seek to liberate themselves, without realizing how deeply it has been woven into their consciousness."
"For it is obvious that if a man is entered at the starting line in a race three hundred years after another man, the first would have to perform some impossible feat in order to catch up with his fellow runner."
"What will it profit him to be able to send his children to an integrated school if the family income is insufficient to buy them school clothes?"
"To this day the white poor also suffer deprivation and the humiliation of poverty if not of color. They are chained by the weight of discrimination, though its badge of degradation does not mark them. It corrupts their lives, frustrates their opportunities, and withers their education."
Quoting Louis Harris - "the death of President Kennedy produced a profound change in the thinking of the American people; a massive rejection of extremism from either right or left, accompanied by an individual sense of guilt for not working more for tolerance towards others."
From the afterword by Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. - "He knew that the biggest decisions that affect our communities are made far from the halls of government; they are made in corporate boardrooms, in the suites of investment bankers, in the offices of pension fund trustees and managers."
One excellent example concerns the greatest stumbling block to equality in the US - the white moderate. It is not the outspoken racist that gets in the way of change so much as it is the person in the middle (often a "good, religious individual") who wants to maintain the status quo. I also found comments concerning the prejudice that lies at the foundation of America, and the uncomfortable denial that people seem to have with it, very relevant. The most poignant to me, and something that comes up several times in this book, was Dr. King's claims that the poverty stricken are also oppressed and shamed in this country. This was the next fight that he wanted to engage in, and we'd have been better off for it. He proposes a "Bill of Disadvantage" for both black people as well as the poor and other minorities that I wish we'd have been able to learn about in school as kids. I agree with Rev. Jesse Jackson in the afterword - this should be essential reading for every high school student. It has opened my eyes to an important part of America's history that I am always trying to understand better, but even more so, has given me a clear lens to identify and speak on problems that still exist in this country today.
Favorite Quotes:
"If he is still saying, 'Not enough', it is because he does not feel that he should be expected to be grateful for the halting and inadequate attempts of his society to catch up with the basic rights he ought to have inherited automatically, centuries ago, by virtue of his membership in the human family and his American birthright."
"It is this tangled web of prejudice from which many Americans now seek to liberate themselves, without realizing how deeply it has been woven into their consciousness."
"For it is obvious that if a man is entered at the starting line in a race three hundred years after another man, the first would have to perform some impossible feat in order to catch up with his fellow runner."
"What will it profit him to be able to send his children to an integrated school if the family income is insufficient to buy them school clothes?"
"To this day the white poor also suffer deprivation and the humiliation of poverty if not of color. They are chained by the weight of discrimination, though its badge of degradation does not mark them. It corrupts their lives, frustrates their opportunities, and withers their education."
Quoting Louis Harris - "the death of President Kennedy produced a profound change in the thinking of the American people; a massive rejection of extremism from either right or left, accompanied by an individual sense of guilt for not working more for tolerance towards others."
From the afterword by Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. - "He knew that the biggest decisions that affect our communities are made far from the halls of government; they are made in corporate boardrooms, in the suites of investment bankers, in the offices of pension fund trustees and managers."
emsley7's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
fast-paced
5.0