Martin Luther King's Letter from Birmingham Jail

[ N. B. All typographical errors are from the original source and therefore have not been corrected.
AUTHOR ! NOT"# This response to a published statement by eight fello$ clergymen from Alabama %Bishop &. &. '. &arpenter( Bishop 'oseph A. )uric*( Rabbi Hilton +. ,rafman( Bishop -aul Hardin( Bishop Holan B. Harmon( the Reverend ,eorge .. .urray. the Reverend "d$ard /. Ramage and the Reverend "arl !tallings0 $as composed under some$hat constricting circumstance. Begun on the margins of the ne$spaper in $hich the statement appeared $hile 1 $as in 2ail( the letter $as continued on scraps of $riting paper supplied by a friendly Negro trusty( and concluded on a pad my attorneys $ere eventually permitted to leave me. Although the te3t remains in substance unaltered( 1 have indulged in the author s prerogative of polishing it for publication.

April 45( 4657 .8 )"AR 9"++O: &+"R,8."N# :hile confined here in the Birmingham city 2ail( 1 came across your recent statement calling my present activities ;un$ise and untimely.; !eldom do 1 pause to ans$er criticism of my $or* and ideas. 1f 1 sought to ans$er all the criticisms that cross my des*( my secretaries $ould have little time for anything other than such correspondence in the course of the day( and 1 $ould have no time for constructive $or*. But since 1 feel that you are men of genuine good $ill and that your criticisms are sincerely set forth( 1 $ant to try to ans$er your statements in $hat 1 hope $ill be patient and reasonable terms. 1 thin* 1 should indicate $hy 1 am here 1n Birmingham( since you have been influenced by the vie$ $hich argues against ;outsiders coming in.; 1 have the honor of serving as president of the !outhern &hristian +eadership &onference( an organi<ation operating in every southern state( $ith head=uarters in Atlanta( ,eorgia. :e have some eighty>five affiliated organi<ations across the !outh( and one of them is the Alabama &hristian .ovement for Human Rights. 9re=uently $e share staff( educational and financial resources $ith our affiliates. !everal months ago the affiliate here in Birmingham as*ed us to be on call to engage in a nonviolent direct>action program if such $ere deemed necessary. :e readily consented( and $hen the hour came $e lived up to our promise. !o 1( along $ith several members of my staff( am here because 1 $as invited here 1 am here because 1 have organi<ational ties here. But more basically( 1 am in Birmingham because in2ustice is here. 'ust as the prophets of the eighth century B.&. left their villages and carried their ;thus saith the +ord; far beyond the boundaries of their home to$ns( and 2ust as the Apostle -aul left his village of Tarsus and carried the gospel of 'esus &hrist to the far corners of the ,reco>Roman $orld( so am 1. compelled to carry the gospel of freedom beyond my o$n home to$n. +i*e -aul( 1 must constantly respond to the .acedonian call for aid. .oreover( 1 am cogni<ant of the interrelatedness of all communities and states. 1 cannot sit idly by in Atlanta and not be concerned about $hat happens in Birmingham. 1n2ustice any$here is a threat to 2ustice every$here. :e are caught in an inescapable net$or* of mutuality( tied in a single garment of destiny. :hatever affects one directly( affects all indirectly. Never again can $e afford to live $ith the narro$( provincial ;outside agitator; idea. Anyone $ho lives inside the United !tates can never be considered an outsider any$here $ithin its bounds. 4

8ou deplore the demonstrations ta*ing place 1n Birmingham. But your statement( 1 am sorry to say( fails to e3press a similar concern for the conditions that brought about the demonstrations. 1 am sure that none of you $ould $ant to rest content $ith the superficial *ind of social analysis that deals merely $ith effects and does not grapple $ith underlying causes. 1t is unfortunate that demonstrations are ta*ing place in Birmingham( but it is even more unfortunate that the city s $hite po$er structure left the Negro community $ith no alternative. 1n any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps# collection of the facts to determine $hether in2ustices e3ist? negotiation? self>purification? and direct action. :e have gone through an these steps in Birmingham. There can be no gainsaying the fact that racial in2ustice engulfs this community. Birmingham is probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United !tates. 1ts ugly record of brutality is $idely *no$n. Negroes have e3perienced grossly un2ust treatment in the courts. There have been more unsolved bombings of Negro homes and churches in Birmingham than in any other city in the nation. These are the hard( brutal facts of the case. On the basis of these conditions( Negro leaders sought to negotiate $ith the city fathers. But the latter consistently refused to engage in good>faith negotiation. Then( last !eptember( came the opportunity to tal* $ith leaders of Birmingham s economic community. 1n the course of the negotiations( certain promises $ere made by the merchants >>> for e3ample( to remove the stores humiliating racial signs. On the basis of these promises( the Reverend 9red !huttles$orth and the leaders of the Alabama &hristian .ovement for Human Rights agreed to a moratorium on all demonstrations. As the $ee*s and months $ent by( $e reali<ed that $e $ere the victims of a bro*en promise. A fe$ signs( briefly removed( returned? the others remained. As in so many past e3periences( our hopes bad been blasted( and the shado$ of deep disappointment settled upon us. :e had no alternative e3cept to prepare for direct action( $hereby $e $ould present our very bodies as a means of laying our case before the conscience of the local and the national community. .indful of the difficulties involved( $e decided to underta*e a process of self>purification. :e began a series of $or*shops on nonviolence( and $e repeatedly as*ed ourselves # ;Are you able to accept blo$s $ithout retaliating@; ;Are you able to endure the ordeal of 2ail@; :e decided to schedule our direct>action program for the "aster season( reali<ing that e3cept for &hristmas( this is the main shopping period of the year. Ano$ing that a strong economic $ith $ith> dra$al program $ould be the by>product of direct action( $e felt that this $ould be the best time to bring pressure to bear on the merchants for the needed change. Then it occurred to us that Birmingham s mayoralty election $as coming up in .arch( and $e speedily decided to postpone action until after election day. :hen $e discovered that the &ommissioner of -ublic !afety( "ugene ;Bull; &onnor( had piled up enough votes to be in the run>oat $e decided again to postpone action until the day after the run> off so that the demonstrations could not be used to cloud the issues. +i*e many others( $e $aited to see .r. &onnor defeated( and to this end $e endured postponement after

postponement. Having aided in this community need( $e felt that our direct>action program could be delayed no longer. 8ou may $ell as*# ;:hy direct action@ :hy sit>ins( marches and so forth@ 1sn t negotiation a better path@; 8ou are =uite right in calling( for negotiation. 1ndeed( this is the very purpose of direct action. Nonviolent direct action see*s to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community $hich has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. 1t see*s so to dramati<e the issue that it can no longer be ignored. .y citing the creation of tension as part of the $or* of the nonviolent>resister may sound rather shoc*ing. But 1 must confess that 1 am not afraid of the $ord ;tension.; 1 have earnestly opposed violent tension( but there is a type of constructive( nonviolent tension $hich is necessary for gro$th. 'ust as !ocrates felt that it $as necessary to create a tension in the mind so that individuals could rise from the bondage of myths and half> truths to the unfettered realm of creative analysis and ob2ective appraisal( $e must $e see the need for nonviolent gadflies to create the *ind of tension in society that $ill help men rise from the dar* depths of pre2udice and racism to the ma2estic heights of understanding and brotherhood. The purpose of our direct>action program is to create a situation so crisis>pac*ed that it $ill inevitably open the door to negotiation. 1 therefore concur $ith you in your call for negotiation. Too long has our beloved !outhland been bogged do$n in a tragic effort to live in monologue rather than dialogue. One of the basic points in your statement is that the action that 1 and my associates have ta*en in Birmingham is untimely. !ome have as*ed# ;:hy didn t you give the ne$ city administration time to act@; The only ans$er that 1 can give to this =uery is that the ne$ Birmingham administration must be prodded about as much as the outgoing one( before it $ill act. :e are sadly mista*en if $e feel that the election of Albert Bout$ell as mayor $ill bring the millennium to Birmingham. :hile .r. Bout$ell is a much more gentle person than .r. &onnor( they are both segregationists( dedicated to maintenance of the status =uo. 1 have hope that .r. Bout$ell $ill be reasonable enough to see the futility of massive resistance to desegregation. But he $ill not see this $ithout pressure from devotees of civil rights. .y friends( 1 must say to you that $e have not made a single gain civil rights $ithout determined legal and nonviolent pressure. +amentably( it is an historical fact that privileged groups seldom give up their privileges voluntarily. 1ndividuals may see the moral light and voluntarily give up their un2ust posture? but( as Reinhold Niebuhr has reminded us( groups tend to be more immoral than individuals. :e *no$ through painful e3perience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor? it must be demanded by the oppressed. 9ran*ly( 1 have yet to engage in a direct>action campaign that $as ;$ell timed; in the vie$ of those $ho have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. 9or years no$ 1 have heard the $ord ;:aitC; 1t rings in the ear of every Negro $ith piercing familiarity. This ;:ait; has almost al$ays meant Never.; :e must come to see( $ith one of our distinguished 2urists( that ;2ustice too long delayed is 2ustice denied.;

:e have $aited for more than 7DE years for our constitutional and ,od>given rights. The nations of Asia and Africa are moving $ith 2etli*e speed to$ard gaining political independence( but $e stiff creep at horse>and>buggy pace to$ard gaining a cup of coffee at a lunch counter. -erhaps it is easy for those $ho have never felt the stinging dar* of segregation to say( ;:ait.; But $hen you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at $ill and dro$n your sisters and brothers at $him? $hen you have seen hate>filled policemen curse( *ic* and even *ill your blac* brothers and sisters? $hen you see the vast ma2ority of your t$enty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society? $hen you suddenly find your tongue t$isted and your speech stammering as you see* to e3plain to your si3>year>old daughter $hy she can t go to the public amusement par* that has 2ust been advertised on television( and see tears $elling up in her eyes $hen she is told that 9unto$n is closed to colored children( and see ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in her little mental s*y( and see her beginning to distort her personality by developing an unconscious bitterness to$ard $hite people? $hen you have to concoct an ans$er for a five>year>old son $ho is as*ing# ;)addy( $hy do $hite people treat colored people so mean@;? $hen you ta*e a cross>county drive and find it necessary to sleep night after night in the uncomfortable corners of your automobile because no motel $ill accept you? $hen you are humiliated day in and day out by nagging signs reading ;$hite; and ;colored;? $hen your first name becomes ;nigger(; your middle name becomes ;boy; %ho$ever old you are0 and your last name becomes ;'ohn(; and your $ife and mother are never given the respected title ;.rs.;? $hen you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro( living constantly at tiptoe stance( never =uite *no$ing $hat to e3pect ne3t( and are plagued $ith inner fears and outer resentments? $hen you no forever fighting a degenerating sense of ;nobodiness; then you $ill understand $hy $e find it difficult to $ait. There comes a time $hen the cup of endurance runs over( and men are no longer $illing to be plunged into the abyss of despair. 1 hope( sirs( you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience. 8ou e3press a great deal of an3iety over our $illingness to brea* la$s. This is certainly a legitimate concern. !ince $e so diligently urge people to obey the !upreme &ourt s decision of 46FD outla$ing segregation in the public schools( at first glance it may seem rather parado3ical for us consciously to brea* la$s. One may $on as*# ;Ho$ can you advocate brea*ing some la$s and obeying others@; The ans$er lies in the fact that there fire t$o types of la$s# 2ust and un2ust. 1 $ould be the Brat to advocate obeying 2ust la$s. One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey 2ust la$s. &onversely( one has a moral responsibility to disobey un2ust la$s. 1 $ould agree $ith !t. Augustine that ;an un2ust la$ is no la$ at all; No$( $hat is the difference bet$een the t$o@ Ho$ does one determine $hether a la$ is 2ust or un2ust@ A 2ust la$ is a man>made code that s=uares $ith the moral la$ or the la$ of ,od. An un2ust la$ is a code that is out of harmony $ith the moral la$. To put it in the terms of !t. Thomas A=uinas# An un2ust la$ is a human la$ that is not rooted in eternal la$ and natural la$. Any la$ that uplifts human personality is 2ust. Any la$ that degrades human personality is un2ust. All segregation statutes are un2ust because segregation distort the soul and damages the personality. 1t gives the segregator a false

sense of superiority and the segregated a false sense of inferiority. !egregation( to use the terminology of the 'e$ish philosopher .artin Buber( substitutes an ;1>it; relationship for an ;1>thou; relationship and ends up relegating persons to the status of things. Hence segregation is not only politically( economically and sociologically unsound( it is morally $rong and a$ful. -aul Tillich said that sin is separation. 1s not segregation an e3istential e3pression of man s tragic separation( his a$ful estrangement( his terrible sinfulness@ Thus it is that 1 can urge men to obey the 46FD decision of the !upreme &ourt( for it is morally right? and 1 can urge them to disobey segregation ordinances( for they are morally $rong. +et us consider a more concrete e3ample of 2ust and un2ust la$s. An un2ust la$ is a code that a numerical or po$er ma2ority group compels a minority group to obey but does not ma*e binding on itself. This is difference made legal. By the same to*en( a 2ust la$ is a code that a ma2ority compels a minority to follo$ and that it is $illing to follo$ itself. This is sameness made legal. +et me give another e3planation. A la$ is un2ust if it is inflicted on a minority that( as a result of being denied the right to vote( had no part in enacting or devising the la$. :ho can say that the legislature of Alabama $hich set up that state s segregation la$s $as democratically elected@ Throughout Alabama all sorts of devious methods are used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters( and there are some counties in $hich( even though Negroes constitute a ma2ority of the population( not a single Negro is registered. &an any la$ enacted under such circumstances be considered democratically structured@ !ometimes a la$ is 2ust on its face and un2ust in its application. 9or instance( 1 have been arrested on a charge of parading $ithout a permit. No$( there is nothing $rong in having an ordinance $hich re=uires a permit for a parade. But such an ordinance becomes un2ust $hen it is used to maintain segregation and to deny citi<ens the 9irst Amendment privilege of peaceful assembly and protest. 1 hope you are able to ace the distinction 1 am trying to point out. 1n no sense do 1 advocate evading or defying the la$( as $ould the rabid segregationist. That $ould lead to anarchy. One $ho brea*s an un2ust la$ must do so openly( lovingly( and $ith a $illingness to accept the penalty. 1 submit that an individual $ho brea*s a la$ that conscience tells him is un2ust and $ho $illingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its in2ustice( is in reality e3pressing the highest respect for la$. Of course( there is nothing ne$ about this *ind of civil disobedience. 1t $as evidenced sublimely in the refusal of !hadrach( .eshach and Abednego to obey the la$s of Nebuchadne<<ar( on the ground that a higher moral la$ $as at sta*e. 1t $as practiced superbly by the early &hristians( $ho $ere $illing to face hungry lions and the e3cruciating pain of chopping bloc*s rather than submit to certain un2ust la$s of the Roman "mpire. To a degree( academic freedom is a reality today because !ocrates

practiced civil disobedience. 1n our o$n nation( the Boston Tea -arty represented a massive act of civil disobedience. :e should never forget that everything Adolf Hitler did in ,ermany $as ;legal; and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary $as ;illegal.; 1t $as ;illegal; to aid and comfort a 'e$ in Hitler s ,ermany. "ven so( 1 am sure that( had 1 lived in ,ermany at the time( 1 $ould have aided and comforted my 'e$ish brothers. 1f today 1 lived in a &ommunist country $here certain principles dear to the &hristian faith are suppressed( 1 $ould openly advocate disobeying that country s antireligious la$s. 1 must ma*e t$o honest confessions to you( my &hristian and 'e$ish brothers. 9irst( 1 must confess that over the past fe$ years 1 have been gravely disappointed $ith the $hite moderate. 1 have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro s great stumbling bloc* in his stride to$ard freedom is not the :hite &iti<en s &ounciler or the Au Alu3 Alanner( but the $hite moderate( $ho is more devoted to ;order; than to 2ustice? $ho prefers a negative peace $hich is the absence of tension to a positive peace $hich is the presence of 2ustice? $ho constantly says# ;1 agree $ith you in the goal you see*( but 1 cannot agree $ith your methods of direct action;? $ho paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man s freedom? $ho lives by a mythical concept of time and $ho constantly advises the Negro to $ait for a ;more convenient season.; !hallo$ understanding from people of good $ill is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill $ill. +u*e$arm acceptance is much more be$ildering than outright re2ection. 1 had hoped that the $hite moderate $ould understand that la$ and order e3ist for the purpose of establishing 2ustice and that $hen they fan in this purpose they become the dangerously structured dams that bloc* the flo$ of social progress. 1 had hoped that the $hite moderate $ould understand that the present tension in the !outh is a necessary phase of the transition from an obno3ious negative peace( in $hich the Negro passively accepted his un2ust plight( to a substantive and positive peace( in $hich all men $ill respect the dignity and $orth of human personality. Actually( $e $ho engage in nonviolent direct action are not the creators of tension. :e merely bring to the surface the hidden tension that is already alive. :e bring it out in the open( $here it can be seen and dealt $ith. +i*e a boil that can never be cured so long as it is covered up but must be opened $ith an its ugliness to the natural medicines of air and light( in2ustice must be e3posed( $ith all the tension its e3posure creates( to the light of human conscience and the air of national opinion before it can be cured. 1n your statement you assert that our actions( even though peaceful( must be condemned because they precipitate violence. But is this a logical assertion@ 1sn t this li*e condemning a robbed man because his possession of money precipitated the evil act of robbery@ 1sn t this li*e condemning !ocrates because his uns$erving commitment to truth and his philosophical in=uiries precipitated the act by the misguided populace in $hich they made him drin* hemloc*@ 1sn t this li*e condemning 'esus because his uni=ue ,od> consciousness and never>ceasing devotion to ,od s $ill precipitated the evil act of crucifi3ion@ :e must come to see that( as the federal courts have consistently affirmed( it

is $rong to urge an individual to cease his efforts to gain his basic constitutional rights because the =uest may precipitate violence. !ociety must protect the robbed and punish the robber. 1 had also hoped that the $hite moderate $ould re2ect the myth concerning time in relation to the struggle for freedom. 1 have 2ust received a letter from a $hite brother in Te3as. He $rites# ;An &hristians *no$ that the colored people $ill receive e=ual rights eventually( but it is possible that you are in too great a religious hurry. 1t has ta*en &hristianity almost t$o thousand years to accomplish $hat it has. The teachings of &hrist ta*e time to come to earth.; !uch an attitude stems from a tragic misconception of time( from the strangely rational notion that there is something in the very flo$ of time that $ill inevitably cure all ills. Actually( time itself is neutral? it can be used either destructively or constructively. .ore and more 1 feel that the people of ill $ill have used time much more effectively than have the people of good $ill. :e $ill have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful $ords and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people. Human progress never rolls in on $heels of inevitability? it comes through the tireless efforts of men $illing to be co>$or*ers $ith ,od( and $ithout this hard $or*( time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. :e must use time creatively( in the *no$ledge that the time is al$ays ripe to do right. No$ is the time to ma*e real the promise of democracy and transform our pending national elegy into a creative psalm of brotherhood. No$ is the time to lift our national policy from the =uic*sand of racial in2ustice to 5e solid roc* of human dignity. 8ou spea* of our activity in Birmingham as e3treme. At fist 1 $as rather disappointed that fello$ clergymen $ould see my nonviolent efforts as those of an e3tremist. 1 began thin*ing about the fact that stand in the middle of t$o opposing forces in the Negro community. One is a force of complacency( made up in part of Negroes $ho( as a result of long years of oppression( are so drained of self>respect and a sense of ;somebodiness; that they have ad2usted to segregation? and in part of a fe$ middle class Negroes $ho( because of a degree of academic and economic security and because in some $ays they profit by segregation( have become insensitive to the problems of the masses. The other force is one of bitterness and hatred( and it comes perilously close to advocating violence. 1t is e3pressed in the various blac* nationalist groups that are springing up across the nation( the largest and best>*no$n being "li2ah .uhammad s .uslim movement. Nourished by the Negro s frustration over the continued e3istence of racial discrimination( this movement is made up of people $ho have lost faith in America( $ho have absolutely repudiated &hristianity( and $ho have concluded that the $hite man is an incorrigible ;devil.; 1 have tried to stand bet$een these t$o forces( saying that $e need emulate neither the ;do>nothingism; of the complacent nor the hatred and despair of the blac* nationalist. 9or there is the more e3cellent $ay of love and nonviolent protest. 1 am grateful to ,od that( through the influence of the Negro church( the $ay of nonviolence became an integral part of our struggle.

1f this philosophy had not emerged( by no$ many streets of the !outh $ould( 1 am convinced( be flo$ing $ith blood. And 1 am further convinced that if our $hite brothers dismiss as ;rabble>rousers; and ;outside agitators; those of us $ho employ nonviolent direct action( and if they refuse to support our nonviolent efforts( millions of Negroes $ill( out of frustration and despair( see* solace and security in blac*>nationalist ideologies a development that $ould inevitably lead to a frightening racial nightmare. Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever. The yearning for freedom eventually manifests itself( and that is $hat has happened to the American Negro. !omething $ithin has reminded him of his birthright of freedom( and something $ithout has reminded him that it can be gained. &onsciously or unconsciously( he has been caught up by the Heitgeist( and $ith his blac* brothers of Africa and his bro$n and yello$ brothers of Asia( !outh America and the &aribbean( the United !tates Negro is moving $ith a sense of great urgency to$ard the promised land of racial 2ustice. 1f one recogni<es this vital urge that has engulfed the Negro community( one should readily understand $hy public demonstrations are ta*ing place. The Negro has many pent>up resentments and latent frustrations( and he must release them. !o let him march? let him ma*e prayer pilgrimages to the city hall? let him go on freedom rides>and try to understand $hy he must do so. 1f his repressed emotions are not released in nonviolent $ays( they $ill see* e3pression through violence? this is not a threat but a fact of history. !o 1 have not said to my people# ;,et rid of your discontent.; Rather( 1 have tried to say that this normal and healthy discontent can be channeled into the creative outlet of nonviolent direct action. And no$ this approach is being termed e3tremist. But though 1 $as initially disappointed at being categori<ed as an e3tremist( as 1 continued to thin* about the matter 1 gradually gained a measure of satisfaction from the label. :as not 'esus an e3tremist for love# ;+ove your enemies( bless them that curse you( do good to them that hate you( and pray for them $hich despitefully use you( and persecute you.; :as not Amos an e3tremist for 2ustice# ;+et 2ustice roll do$n li*e $aters and righteousness li*e an ever>flo$ing stream.; :as not -aul an e3tremist for the &hristian gospel# ;1 bear in my body the mar*s of the +ord 'esus.; :as not .artin +uther an e3tremist# ;Here 1 stand? 1 cannot do other$ise( so help me ,od.; And 'ohn Bunyan# ;1 $ill stay in 2ail to the end of my days before 1 ma*e a butchery of my conscience.; And Abraham +incoln# ;This nation cannot survive half slave and half free.; And Thomas 'efferson# ;:e hold these truths to be self>evident( that an men are created e=ual ...; !o the =uestion is not $hether $e $ill be e3tremists( but $hat *ind of e3tremists $e viii be. :e $e be e3tremists for hate or for love@ :ill $e be e3tremist for the preservation of in2ustice or for the e3tension of 2ustice@ 1n that dramatic scene on &alvary s hill three men $ere crucified. :e must never forget that all three $ere crucified for the same crime>>> the crime of e3tremism. T$o $ere e3tremists for immorality( and thus fell belo$ their environment. The other( 'eans &hrist( $as an e3tremist for love( truth and goodness( and thereby rose above his environment. -erhaps the !outh( the nation and the $orld are in dire need of creative e3tremists. 1 had hoped that the $hite moderate $ould see this need. -erhaps 1 $as too optimistic? perhaps 1 e3pected too much. 1 suppose 1 should have reali<ed that fe$ members of the

oppressor race can understand the deep groans and passionate yearnings of the oppressed race( and still fe$er have the vision to see that in2ustice must be rooted out by strong( persistent and determined action. 1 am than*ful( ho$ever( that some of our $hite brothers in the !outh have grasped the meaning of this social revolution and committed themselves to it. They are still too fe$ in =uantity( but they are big in =uality. !ome>such as Ralph .c,ill( +illian !mith( Harry ,olden( 'ames .cBride )abbs( Ann Braden and !arah -atton Boyle>>>have $ritten about our struggle in elo=uent and prophetic terms. Others have marched $ith us do$n nameless streets of the !outh. They have languished in filthy( roach>infested 2ails( suffering the abuse and brutality of policemen $ho vie$ them as ;dirty nigger lovers.; Unli*e so many of their moderate brothers and sisters( they have recogni<ed the urgency of the moment and sensed the need for po$erful ;action; antidotes to combat the disease of segregation. +et me ta*e note of my other ma2or disappointment. 1 have been so greatly disappointed $ith the $hite church and its leadership. Of course( there are some notable e3ceptions. 1 am not unmindful of the fact that each of you has ta*en some significant stands on this issue. 1 commend you( Reverend !tallings( for your &hristian stand on this past !unday( in $elcoming Negroes to your $orship service on a non segregated basis. 1 commend the &atholic leaders of this state for integrating !pring Hill &ollege several years ago. But despite these notable e3ceptions( 1 must honestly reiterate that 1 have been disappointed $ith the church. 1 do not say this as one of those negative critics $ho can al$ays find something $rong $ith the church. 1 say this as a minister of the gospel( $ho loves the church? $ho $as nurtured in its bosom? $ho has been sustained by its spiritual blessings and $ho $ill remain true to it as long as the cord of Rio shall lengthen. :hen 1 $as suddenly catapulted into the leadership of the bus protest in .ontgomery( Alabama( a fe$ years ago( 1 felt $e $ould be supported by the $hite church felt that the $hite ministers( priests and rabbis of the !outh $ould be among our strongest allies. 1nstead( some have been outright opponents( refusing to understand the freedom movement and misrepresenting its leader era? an too many others have been more cautious than courageous and have remained silent behind the anestheti<ing security of stained>glass $indo$s. 1n spite of my shattered dreams( 1 came to Birmingham $ith the hope that the $hite religious leadership of this community $ould see the 2ustice of our cause and( $ith deep moral concern( $ould serve as the channel through $hich our 2ust grievances could reach the po$er structure. 1 had hoped that each of you $ould understand. But again 1 have been disappointed. 1 have heard numerous southern religious leaders admonish their $orshipers to comply $ith a desegregation decision because it is the la$( but 1 have longed to hear $hite ministers declare# ;9ollo$ this decree because integration is morally right and because the Negro is your brother.; 1n the midst of blatant in2ustices inflicted upon the Negro( 1 have $atched $hite churchmen stand on the sideline and mouth pious irrelevancies and sanctimonious trivialities. 1n the midst of a mighty struggle to rid our nation of racial and

economic in2ustice( 1 have heard many ministers say# ;Those are social issues( $ith $hich the gospel has no real concern.; And 1 have $atched many churches commit themselves to a completely other $orldly religion $hich ma*es a strange( on Biblical distinction bet$een body and soul( bet$een the sacred and the secular. 1 have traveled the length and breadth of Alabama( .ississippi and all the other southern states. On s$eltering summer days and crisp autumn mornings 1 have loo*ed at the !outh s beautiful churches $ith their lofty spires pointing heaven$ard. 1 have beheld the impressive outlines of her massive religious>education buildings. Over and over 1 have found myself as*ing# ;:hat *ind of people $orship here@ :ho is their ,od@ :here $ere their voices $hen the lips of ,overnor Barnett dripped $ith $ords of interposition and nullification@ :here $ere they $hen ,overnor :alleye gave a clarion call for defiance and hatred@ :here $ere their voices of support $hen bruised and $eary Negro men and $omen decided to rise from the dar* dungeons of complacency to the bright hills of creative protest@; 8es( these =uestions are still in my mind. 1n deep disappointment 1 have $ept over the la3ity of the church. But be assured that my tears have been tears of love. There can be no deep disappointment $here there is not deep love. 8es( 1 love the church. Ho$ could 1 do other$ise@ l am in the rather uni=ue position of being the son( the grandson and the great> grandson of preachers. 8es( 1 see the church as the body of &hrist. But( ohC Ho$ $e have blemished and scarred that body through social neglect and through fear of being nonconformists. There $as a time $hen the church $as very po$erful in the time $hen the early &hristians re2oiced at being deemed $orthy to suffer for $hat they believed. 1n those days the church $as not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion? it $as a thermostat that transformed the mores of society. :henever the early &hristians entered a to$n( the people in po$er became disturbed and immediately sought to convict the &hristians for being ;disturbers of the peace; and ;outside agitators; But the &hristians pressed on( in the conviction that they $ere ;a colony of heaven(; called to obey ,od rather than man. !mall in number( they $ere big in commitment. They $ere too ,od into3icated to be ;astronomically intimidated.; By their effort and e3ample they brought an end to such ancient evils as infanticide. and gladiatorial contests. Things are different no$. !o often the contemporary church is a $ea*( ineffectual voice $ith an uncertain sound. !o often it is an archdefender of the status =uo. -ar from being disturbed by the presence of the church( the po$er structure of the average community is consoled by the church s silent and often even vocal sanction of things as they are. But the 2udgment of ,od is upon the church as never before. 1f today s church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church( it vi lose its authenticity( forfeit the loyalty of millions( and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club $ith no meaning for the t$entieth century. "very day 1 meet young people $hose disappointment $ith the church has turned into outright disgust.

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-erhaps 1 have once again been too optimistic. 1s organi<ed religion too ine3tricably bound to the status =uo to save our nation and the $orld@ -erhaps 1 must turn my faith to the inner spiritual church( the church $ithin the church( as the true e**lesia and the hope of the $orld. But again 1 am than*ful to ,od that some noble souls from the ran*s of organi<ed religion have bro*en loose from the paraly<ing chains of conformity and 2oined us as active partners in the struggle for freedom( They have left their secure congregations and $al*ed the streets of Albany( ,eorgia( $ith us. They have gone do$n the high$ays of the !outh on tortuous rides for freedom. 8es( they have gone to 2ai $ith us. !ome have been dismissed from their churches( have lost the support of their bishops and fello$ ministers. But they have acted in the faith that right defeated is stronger than evil triumphant. Their $itness has been the spiritual salt that has preserved the true meaning of the gospel in these troubled times. They have carved a tunnel of hope through the dar* mountain of disappointment. 1 hope the church as a $hole $ill meet the challenge of this decisive hour. But even if the church does not come to the aid of 2ustice( 1 have no despair about the future. 1 have no fear about the outcome of our struggle in Birmingham( even if our motives are at present misunderstood. :e $ill reach the goal of freedom in Birmingham( ham and all over the nation( because the goal of America * freedom. Abused and scorned though $e may be( our destiny is tied up $ith America s destiny. Before the pilgrims landed at -lymouth( $e $ere here. Before the pen of 'efferson etched the ma2estic $ords of the )eclaration of 1ndependence across the pages of history( $e $ere here. 9or more than t$o centuries our forebears labored in this country $ithout $ages? they made cotton *ing? they built the homes of their masters $hile suffering gross in2ustice and shameful humiliation>and yet out of a bottomless vitality they continued to thrive and develop. 1f the ine3pressible cruelties of slavery could not stop us( the opposition $e no$ face $ill surely fail. :e $ill $in our freedom because the sacred heritage of our nation and the eternal $ill of ,od are embodied in our echoing demands. Before closing 1 feel impelled to mention one other point in your statement that has troubled me profoundly. 8ou $armly commended the Birmingham police force for *eeping ;order; and ;preventing violence.; 1 doubt that you $ould have so $armly commended the police force if you had seen its dogs sin*ing their teeth into unarmed( nonviolent Negroes. 1 doubt that you $ould so =uic*ly commend the policemen if .you $ere to observe their ugly and inhumane treatment of Negroes here in the city 2ail? if you $ere to $atch them push and curse old Negro $omen and young Negro girls? if you $ere to see them slap and *ic* old Negro men and young boys? if you $ere to observe them( as they did on t$o occasions( refuse to give us food because $e $anted to sing our grace together. 1 cannot 2oin you in your praise of the Birmingham police department. 1t is true that the police have e3ercised a degree of discipline in handing the demonstrators. 1n this sense they have conducted themselves rather ;nonviolently; in pubic. But for $hat purpose@ To preserve the evil system of segregation. Over the past fe$ years 1 have consistently preached that nonviolence demands that the means $e use must be as pure as the ends $e see*. 1 have tried to ma*e clear that it is $rong to use immoral means to attain moral ends. But no$ 1 must affirm that it is 2ust as $rong( or

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perhaps even more so( to use moral means to preserve immoral ends. -erhaps .r. &onnor and his policemen have been rather nonviolent in public( as $as &hief -ritchett in Albany( ,eorgia but they have used the moral means of nonviolence to maintain the immoral end of racial in2ustice. As T. !. "liot has said# ;The last temptation is the greatest treason# To do the right deed for the $rong reason.; 1 $ish you had commended the Negro sit>inners and demonstrators of Birmingham for their sublime courage( their $illingness to suffer and their ama<ing discipline in the midst of great provocation. One day the !outh $ill recogni<e its real heroes. They $ill be the 'ames .erediths( $ith the noble sense of purpose that enables them to face 'eering( and hostile mobs( and $ith the agoni<ing loneliness that characteri<es the life of the pioneer. They $ill be old( oppressed( battered Negro $omen( symboli<ed in a seventy>t$o>year> old $oman in .ontgomery( Alabama( $ho rose up $ith a sense of dignity and $ith her people decided not to ride segregated buses( and $ho responded $ith ungrammatical profundity to one $ho in=uired about her $eariness# ;.y fleets is tired( but my soul is at rest.; They $ill be the young high school and college students( the young ministers of the gospel and a host of their elders( courageously and nonviolently sitting in at lunch counters and $illingly going to 2ail for conscience sa*e. One day the !outh $ill *no$ that $hen these disinherited children of ,od sat do$n at lunch counters( they $ere in reality standing up for $hat is best in the American dream and for the most sacred values in our 'udaeo>&hristian heritage( thereby bringing our nation bac* to those great $ells of democracy $hich $ere dug deep by the founding fathers in their formulation of the &onstitution and the )eclaration of 1ndependence. Never before have 1 $ritten so long a letter. 1 m afraid it is much too long to ta*e your precious time. 1 can assure you that it $ould have been much shorter if 1 had been $riting from a comfortable des*( but $hat else can one do $hen he * alone in a narro$ 2ail cell( other than $rite long letters( thin* long thoughts and pray long prayers@ 1f 1 have said anything in this letter that overstates the truth and indicates an unreasonable impatience( 1 beg you to forgive me. 1f 1 have said anything that understates the truth and indicates my having a patience that allo$s me to settle for anything less than brotherhood( 1 beg ,od to forgive me. 1 hope this letter finds you strong in the faith. 1 also hope that circumstances $ill soon ma*e it possible for me to meet each of you( not as an integrationist or a civil rights leader but as a fello$ clergyman and a &hristian brother. +et us all hope that the dar* clouds of racial pre2udice $ill soon pass a$ay and the deep fog of misunderstanding $ill be lifted from our fear>drenched communities( and in some not too distant tomorro$ the radiant stars of love and brotherhood $ill shine over our great nation $ith all their scintillating beauty. 8ours for the cause of -eace and Brotherhood( .ART1N +UTH"R A1N,( 'R.

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