Words: 1269
Because of his revolutionary Ideologies, India was liberated from British rule. On January 30, 1948 Gandhi was assassinated. Sandhog’s philosophy of amiss is useful because it shed insight on the letter written by Dry. Martin Luther King years later. Dry. King was imprisoned as a participant in non-violent demonstrations against segregation. From the Birmingham Jail, Dry. King wrote a letter in response to a public statement of concern by white religious leader of the South. In this letter, he urges his fellow black brothers to participate In non-violent actions In order to be successful. There are various similarities between Gandhi and Dry.
King. Some examples include the importance of acting without violence, the necessity of breaking laws if they are deemed unjust, and the dedication of their lives to helping people reach equality. Both men were strong leaders and their legacy will live on forever. It is so important to realize that the ideas that both Gandhi and Dry. King echo one another through their philosophies. The following of laws by the people is important for any government to function properly. Law is defined as the system of rules that a particular country recognized as regulating the actions of Its members and may enforce by the imposition of penalty.
Throughout the history of the world laws have either been beneficial or devastating to it. The negative uses of laws were enforced both in India and the united. Gandhi recognizes this when he states, “No country has ever risen without being purified through the fire of suffering. ” (p. 451). What he is trying to say Is that no nation has progressed without first having to go though difficult times. This Is either because of unjust laws, unfair treatment or another country having control of another, such as Great Britain over India. The suffering comes in the form of time and the fight for the belief of what is right.
Dry. King understood the difficult problem with waiting for change to occur. He writes, “For years now I have heard the word Wait’. It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This Wait’ had almost always meant ‘never’. ” (up). Both men faced adversity, Gandhi having to see India be ruled by another and Dry. King having to live through a segregated country, where blacks were discriminated In all forms of life. As a result, both men came to conclusion that if they were not going to be treated fairly, action had to be taken. The time to act against rules and regulations is when they re unwarranted.
Gandhi supports this idea when he claims, “We must refuse to wait for the wrong to be righted till the wrong wrongdoer has been roused to a sense of his Inequity. We must not, for fear of ourselves or others having to suffer remain participators In It” (p 453) The Idea that people must follow laws that discriminate or unjust? According to Martin Luther King, “An unjust law is a code that a majority inflicts on a minority that is not binding on itself”. (up). After establishing that a law is unjust, the two men agreed that is acceptable to defy them. Not only is it okay, it is people’s duty to.
Dry. King himself writes, ” I can urge them to disobey segregation ordinances because they are morally wrong” (up). Because blacks were clearly discriminated against by the United States government, they have the right to break these laws. Gandhi agrees when he writes, “if a father does an injustice, it is the duty of his children to leave parental roof. If the head master of a school conducts his institution on immoral bases, the pupil must leave the school. If the chairman of a corporation is corrupt, the members thereof must wash their hands clean of his corruption by withdrawing from it. IPPP). It follows, then the way to disobey these laws must come in a form of non-violent actions Non violence was believed to be the only way to truly be all powerful. While others may disagree because of the belief that violence will produce results, Gandhi argues that these results are only temporary, but the damage is permanent. Gandhi states that non-violence takes much more strength because it is much more mental than simply acting by physical force. He says, “Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes an indomitable will. ” (IPPP) This type of mental strength is what Dry.
King taught his followers. One can see traces of influence of Gandhi on Dry. Kings letter when he writes, “We started having workshops on non-violence and repeatedly asked the questions, ‘Are you able to accept blows without retaliating? And ‘Are you able to endure the ordeals of Jail? (up) Then, after making sure the will is there the action may begin. The two leaders stressed the importance of remaining peaceful. Gandhi claimed non-violence to be “infinitely superior to violence” (IPPP). One way that man can demonstrate this is by using what is available at their disposal.
Gandhi insists that, “Man is not to drown himself in the well of the Shasta but he is to dive in their broad ocean and bring out pearls. At every step he has to use his discrimination as to what is smash and what is whims”. (p. 450). This is a metaphor explaining how people should not be held back by certain laws but rather to bring out the best out of any alternatives they have. Dry. King demonstrates an example of what Gandhi was proclaiming. Instead of using violent methods to get what he wants, Dry. King and his followers decided to exercise their first Amendment privilege of useful assembly to parade throughout the streets. up). Although this led to him being thrown in Jail, Dry. King was able to show how effective non-violent actions can really be. This is also why Dry. King proclaimed, “Over the last few years I have consistently preached that non-violence demands that the means we use be as pure as the ends we seeks(P. 6). These words, speak clearly how both Gandhi and Dry. King felt while they were protesting respective struggles. The non-violent actions that Dry. King participated in were clearly influenced by Sandhog’s philosophy of peace and non-violence. The philosophy that Gandhi and Dry. Ins spread throughout their lives seemed to resemble one another. Gandhi called this “Straight”. It seemed as both men were alive at the same time and echoed each other’s philosophies. Because the two men had to go through oppression by their government they had to develop a productive method in which to protest. Once a law was portrayed as being unjust, men agreed that non-violence was deemed a trait that only mentally strong individuals possessed because it was initiative in those times. Not many people saw this method as powerful because it did not require the use of physical action.
Gandhi devoted his life to living in non -violence and Martin Luther King Jar later devoted his life to preaching it. The two leaders urged their followers to consciously disobey rules if they are intentionally unjust. When Dry. Martin Luther King Jar wrote his letter from Birmingham Jail, he proclaimed the importance of using non-violence. Sandhog’s same philosophy tends show up throughout his letter. One may say that non- violence produced results that may not have occurred other wise. Time can only tell what the power of non-violent actions can result to in year to come.