T ul P ortland O bserver » F ebruary 28, 1996
BLACK HISTORY
(Elp? “J Ía rtía itb (©baertrer
The Negro Is Your Brother
B y D r . M artin L uther K ing J r .
(Editor's note: From the Rirming-
-ham jail, where he was imprisoned
as a participant in nonviolent dem
onstrations against segregation, Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr., wrote in
longhand the letter which follows. It
was his response to a public state
ment o f concern and caution issued
by eight white religious leaders o f
the South.)
While confined here in the Bir
mingham city jail, I came across your
recent statement calling our present
activities “unwise and untimely.”
Seldom, if ever, do I pause to
answer criticism of my work and
ideas. If I sought to answer all of the
criticisms that cross my desk, my
secretaries would be engaged in little
else in the course of the day, and I
would have no time for constructive
work. But since I feel that you are
men of genuine good will and your
criticisms are sincerely set forth, I
would like to answer your statement
in what 1 hope will be patient and
reasonable terms.
I think I should give the reason for
my being in Birmingham, since you
have been influenced by the argu
ment of “outsiders coming in.” I have
the honor of serving as president of
the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference, an organization operat
ing in every Southern state, with head
quarters in Atlanta, Ga.
We have some 85 affiliate organi
zations all across the South, one be
ing the Alabama Christian Move
ment for Human Rights. Whenever
necessary and possible, we share staff,
educational and financial resources
with our affiliates. Several months
ago our local affiliate here in Bir
mingham invited us to be on call to
engage in a nonviolent direct-action
program if such were deemed neces-
sary We readily consented, and when
the hour came we lived up to our
promises.
So I am here, along with several
members of my staff, because we
were invited here. I am here because
I have basic organizational ties here.
Beyond this, I am in Birmingham
because injustice is here. Just as the
eighth-century prophets left their little
villages and carried their “thus saith
pel of freedom beyond my particular
hometown.
Like Paul, I must constantly re
spond to the Macedonian call for aid.
Moreover, I am cognizant of the in
terrelatedness of all communities and
states. I cannot sit idly by in Atlanta
and no, be concerned about what
happens in Birmingham. Injustice
anywhere is a threat to justice every
where.
A Tribute To M y Real Heros
Living in a world full o f bitterness, racial tension, and violence I grew up
watching my “Super Heroes” on television. I had many heros like Batman
the cape crusader, Robin the boy wonder. Superman, spiderman and many
more crime fighters whom I called my heroes.
side ihe United States can never be
considered an outsider.
You deplore the demonstrations
that are presently taking place in
Birmingham. But I am sorry that
your statement did no, express a simi
lar concern for the conditions that
brought the demonstrations into be
ing. I am sure that each of you would
want to go beyond the superficial
social analyst who looks merely at
But deep in my heart I always knew who my real heros were, the ones that
paved the way for me and all other African Americans like me.
It was the true crusaders like Fredrick Douglass, SoJoumer Truth, Harriet
Tubman, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Medger Evers, Rosa Parks,
and many, many more civil rights leaders who lost their lives fighting the
real battles. They fought not with guns, and knives, but with much faith,
hope, courage, diginty and pride.
It was you “My Real Hero’s” who survived the dark nights, it was you who
severed the storms, it was you who was strong, firm and steadfast and would
not be moved, it was you who ran the race, who kept the faith, and kept hope
alive.
Truly you are my “real hero’s” and the wind beneath my wings. Well done
my great and faithful hero’s, well done. I thank you.
—Kelly Hollins
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Police Chief Laurie Pritchett o f Albany, Georgia, placing Martin Luther King Jr., and Dr. W.G. Anderson
under arrest.
the Lord” far beyond the boundaries
of their hometowns; and just as the
Aposjle Paul left his little village of
Tarsus and carried the gospel of Jesus
Christ to practically every hamlet
and city of the Greco-Roman world,
I too am compelled to carry the gos-
We are caught in an inescapable
network of mutuality, tied in a single
garment of destiny. Whatever affects
one directly affects all indirectly.
Never again can we afford to live
with the narrow, provincial “outside
agitator" idea. Anyone who lives in-
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effects and does not grapple with
underlying causes.
I would not hesitate to say that it is
unfortunate that so-called demon
strations are taking place in Birming-
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Continued to page A6
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