King: The Man

I personally loved reading the pages on Martin Luther King Jr. It, to me, is incredible to hear about a man whose voice and charisma was his main tool for change. His philosophies of non-violent protest, inspired in part by Reinhold Niebuhr, captured the attention of many and drew in followers. In Grand Expectations, it stated that he "demanded of impatient followers that they show love," which seemed incredibly new of a leader to say- specifically because of past readings on the ways in which the U.S. demonized other nations into being the "bad guys." King practice of non-violent protest and passion laced through his words instilled deep feeling within his followers. Many praised his use of preaching traditions. This connection that King created with his followers allowed for peaceful protests and boycotts that would accomplish the goals towards desegregation without tainting the images of Blacks in that time. It was quite easy for Whites to latch onto any slight aggression displayed by someone of color and use it against them, but with King's non-violent approach, the true, and unprecedented, aggression of Whites towards Blacks was highlighted for all to see.