This speech that Dr. Martin Luther King gave was one of the most dynamic speeches that I've ever read from him. He called for America to rethink their position in the Vietnam War, and to bring our troops home. Through this speech Dr. King gave a view of America that most have never dared to look at. He showed America on an international scale and showed how our "arrogance" might be perceived by the rest of the world. Dr. King put America on a pedestal for its citizens to scrutinize.
The most obvious point of scrutiny that seemed fill Dr. King's speech was America's thoughts and politics of democracy. He showed the parallels between the poor in America and in Vietnam. Also, he showed the inequality of the treatment of African American soldiers. At home they did not have equal right, but they could still be used to fight a war for America. Black and white men could not go to school together in America but they could kill together. "We were taking black young black men who had been crippled by our society and sending them eight thousand miles away to guarantee liberties in Southeast Asia which they had not found in southwest Georgia and East Harlem".
I think that this speech showed the frustration of the American people at the time, and also the true colors of the American government. The lack of democracy that the American and Vietnamese people received from the American government was horrible. The most significant line out of this entire speech is "A time comes when silence is a betrayal". This line rang true in a time when so many anti-war protests, and civil rights movements were going on. People needed to speak out against injustice and Dr. King was an individual that could speak for the masses.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I think that you are totally right that he was pointing out the many hypocritical aspects of the American government and their pledge to bring democracy to the world, when there were so many problems at home. It was a brave stance for him to make, and I think he really put himself out there in the name of a universal fight against poverty, racism, exploitation, and oppression, not only in the US, but also in the US actions in Vietnam and other places in the world.
ReplyDeleteI thought that it was also interesting in how King decided to even speak out about the war in the first place. He really expanded his role as a civil rights activist to encompass all aspects of American politics. I agree in that Dr. King was definitely an individual who could speak for the masses. Because he had such a moral grasp on what justice was, he felt as though he could not keep himself silenced while we were in Vietnam, and all of these other injustices were occurring within the United States. By combining civil-rights activism with Vietnam protest, King was definitely taking a risk, but in the long run amongst his follower, it simply established him as an even better role-model and symbol of justice than he already was.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Dr. King was a man who spoke for the masses and had a great moral grasp on justice, but I disagree that he was taking a risk in speaking out against the war. It was this grasp on justice that compelled him to speak out in the first place. His message was very consistent with his previous messages concerning civil rights issues. I feel as though MLK speaking about injustices not only applicable to himself or his race, but applicable to mankind as a whole makes him a much more admirable figure.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I agree with what all of you said, after reading through the speech it seemed as though his speech did not present any realistic goals during the time he gave it. It seems to me that his arguments are based off of what a perfect world should be rather than what the world in which we live ever actually could be. Just trying to play devils advocate...
ReplyDelete