Martin Luther King Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Martin Luther King - Essay Example Throughout your letter, you explain to them why your demonstrations were necessary as a means of bringing in the interest and attention of the northern white people and force change in the laws for the benefit of black citizens of the South. You also indicate why it was appropriate and even incumbent upon you, as a minister, to stand up for the human rights of your people rather than to allow them to continue to be so poorly treated. Finally, you demonstrate your connection with your people by pointing out to these ministers why the timing of your demonstrations had to be now as society had finally reached a boiling point when some action was bound to occur. In your closing words, you criticize these other ministers for not helping you find a peaceful means for the people to express their frustration and to act in the name of human goodness. While it is true that your efforts throughout your life did bring about significant change for the better in getting many of these segregation l aws abolished, speaking as a citizen of the 21st century, I regret to tell you that things haven’t really changed all that much. In the 45 years since you wrote your letter, psychologists and sociologists have discovered more and more about the effects of the past upon the reactions of the present within the human mind. Recent investigation has proven that racism is rooted in dysfunctional belief systems resulting from distorted perceptions formed over a period of time as beliefs and practices are passed from one generation to the next. We cannot ignore the significant role of the socio-cultural environment in shaping perceptual patterns. In addition, it is well known that people are inclined to respond on the basis of their own experience when it comes to social interactions and social biases such as racism. Therefore, people who have