Martin Luther King, Jr.

Written after his arrest on April 12, 1963, and published six weeks later on May 28, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” is widely regarded as the most important written document of the modern civil rights movement and a classic text on civil disobedience.

Birmingham, Alabama, was reputed to be the most segregated city in the United States. During the 1950s a series of unsolved bombings directed at African Americans earned it the dubious nickname “Bombingham.” The police department was directed by Commissioner Eugene “Bull” Connor, an outspoken segregationist. In January 1963 the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) targeted Birmingham for its next desegregation campaign. Moderate business leaders in the city realized that Connor’s heavy-handed tactics hurt their city’s prospects for economic development and backed a drive to oust Connor from power. King delayed the start of demonstrations until Connor was defeated in a runoff election for mayor. Connor, however, refused to give up his office, and the SCLC went ahead with its protest against segregated facilities in downtown stores. Connor promptly arrested scores of sit-in demonstrators. When a city judge issued an injunction against further demonstrations, King marched in defiance of the order. Arrested on Good Friday, King refused bail and was locked in solitary confinement.

The same day King was jailed, a group of eight prominent clergymen published an appeal to Birmingham’s African Americans urging them to abandon public protests. The white religious leaders argued that these demonstrations were unnecessarily disruptive and provocative. The city was making progress, they claimed, and protesters should allow the new government time to address their concerns. After reading their plea, King began writing an impassioned rebuttal. His letter was smuggled out of jail and published in pamphlet form on May 28. King’s powerful defense of his confrontational tactics was soon recognized as one of the most influential documents of the civil rights movement.

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