Changes after King's speech Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Changes after King's speech - Essay Example However, there is a serious claim from several critics of the social policy in America that the situation of the blacks has not changed considerably and blacks are still affected by large scale discrimination and similar tendencies. Therefore, many critics are still in disagreement about the condition of blacks in America since the great speech by Martin Luther King occurred on August 28, 1963, from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. In this paper, the main focus has been an investigation of the impact of Martin Luther King speech in determining the situation of blacks who were affected greatly by discrimination and racial injustice. Therefore, it is important to note that the works and speech of Martin Luther King was in the background of severe attacks and violence on the blacks and there were several instances of discrimination and racial injustice against this group. Decades after the influential speech by King, there is a strong view that the situation of the black s has not changed considerably and discrimination against the community still exists in America today. ... The society of the Martin Luther King period is greatly understood as a fragmented community in which the situation of the blacks was not at all comfortable. There was discrimination against the blacks in every sphere of social life and the realization about this fate of the people made King perform his great activities of Civil Rights Movement and make the significant speech of "I Have a Dream". "The militancy of the civil rights movement forced Americans to recognize that the United States was a fragmented society. The forms of oppression, exploitation, and physical abuse had produced routine conditions of fear and anger among African Americans Segregated schools, buses, lunch counters, swimming pools, rest rooms, and drinking fountains were among the many aspects of public life that restricted the freedom of movement of black Americans. Discrimination in voter registration, housing, college admissions, and employment were among the aspects of public life by which blacks were releg ated to an inferior status." (Neal, 149-50) Therefore, the situation of the blacks in connection to social and racial justice was not desirable and the Civil Rights Movement was a protest against all the elements which resulted in the discrimination and racial injustice against the blacks. The blacks were no more willing to further endure the humiliations imposed on them due to the policies of the state and this resulted in acute crisis for those committed to upholding the status quo. At this time, the nation became traumatized by the developments of confrontation in its internal contradictions. The influence of Martin Luther King, the transformational orator, in affecting the condition of the blacks is beyond questions. Martin Luther King is regarded as one of