Learning About Famous Christians

by Kai Sunderland

Martin Luther King, Jr.

In August of 2003, my family travelled to New Orleans to finalise my brother’s adoption. As a home schooled family, most of our holidays quickly become field trips, and this one was no exception. Before the trip, my Mom supplied us with a stack of books and asked us to read as much as we could on the Civil Rights Movement in the U.S. It was interesting, but really didn’t mean a lot to me until we finally visited the places where so many of the civil rights events of the 1950s and 1960s occurred. I guess as a teenager in the year 2004, it is easy for me to take for granted the society where there is an effort made to treat people the same despite the differences in the colour of their skin. I realise from my trip to the southern states, that it is really only recently that these rights were granted to blacks in America.

The civil rights movement was the culmination of the bravery and efforts of a lot of people. Undoubtedly, though, the leader of the group was a reverend from Atlanta, Georgia, named Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin was born into a strong Christian family. His grandfather, father and brother, as well as Martin himself, were all ministers. Martin was also a brilliant man. He completed his high school education at the young age of 15 years, and went on to earn his Ph.D. by the time he was 25 years of age.

In the 1940s the Jim Crow laws were in effect in many of the southern states of the U.S. This legislation allowed segregation based on skin colour. Although whites and blacks lived together, they were not integrated in any way. Black people did not have equal opportunity for education or jobs. They lived in separate neighbour-hoods. They were not allowed to use the same rest rooms or water fountains as white people. Black children went to segregated schools and were not allowed to play with white children. The Ku Klux Klan, a white supremacy group, was very strong in the South, and the police mostly turned a blind eye on the attacks they made against black people. Life for the African American was hard.

When my family visited the Civil Rights Museum in Birmingham, Alabama, we talked to a black man who remembered this time. He told us about how blacks were not allowed in certain restaurants, and how they even had different public bathroom facilities than white people. He remembered having to travel across town to attend school, even though there was a school in his own neighbourhood, because it was reserved for white children. He also told us about some Ku Klux Klan members who had tried to intimidate his family. I was amazed at his stories. I had heard these things before, but I guess I had not realised it was so recent. That man was only about 60 years old!

One of the United States’ most important documents is Martin Luther King Jr.’s Letters from Birmingham Jail. They were written while Martin Luther King Jr. was imprisoned in the jail in Birmingham after being arrested for an unjustifiable charge. The letters are not letters to his family, but letters to his fellow clergymen who were doubting him and his ideas. The letters served their purpose well; they restored hope in the civil rights movement and in Martin Luther King Jr.

One of the largest civil rights marches in American history was held in Washington, DC on August 28, 1963. Young or old, white or black, American or otherwise, people poured into the city. They assembled on the slopes of the Washington monument and marched down to the Lincoln monument to await a speech from Martin Luther King Jr. – a speech that is now considered one of the most moving of all time. It was his famous “I Have a Dream!” speech. The millions who were there were moved by the sincerity that Dr. King showed when he spoke.

The civil rights movement, led by Dr. King, changed the way that Blacks were treated. Dr. King was passionate about his work to ensure equal opportunities. He spoke the feelings and needs of the black people to the nation in an impassioned and meaningful way. He lead marches and acts of nonviolent direct action that brought both publicity to the cause and helped to change the laws that were standing in the way of equality. He was a brave man, putting himself at risk for what he believed. Dr. King’s words and actions have had a far-reaching effect on people everywhere and have made our society better. His work has also had a personal effect on many people, and not just black people. I know it has played an important role for me. My brother is African American, and I love him. He brings my family joy every single day. He can be here, living in a white family in Canada, in part, because of the work of Dr. King. For that, I wish I could personally thank him.

Want to learn more? I recommend these materials:

Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin. This is the true story of a white reporter who took medication that made his skin black and travelled through the southern U.S. in the late 1950s. This book is a classic.

A Call to Conscience: The Landmark Speeches of Martin Luther King Jr., edited by Clayborne Carson. This is an audio CD. Hear Dr. King’s famous words for yourself.

Along Martin Luther King:Travels on Black America’s Main Street by Jonathan Tilove. In a narrative format, this book chronicles the Black community in modern America.