Discussion Questions
1. What are the four basic steps in a non-violent
campaign? Is it necessary to go through each step?
2. Why is direct action a necessary prelude to negotiation?
3. Why does King argue that the white southern moderate
may be more of a threat to African Americans than the Ku Klux Klan?
4. King claims that his position is that of a moderate,
not an extremist. Explain.
Paper Topics
1. At the beginning of his letter King suggests that negotiation
should take place before resorting to direct action, but later he
says that direction action will lead to negotiation. Is this a contradiction?
2. Would King approve of violence if non-violent methods failed
to produce results?
3. King asks his audience to move beyond the legal question of
civil rights to the moral question. Is this move necessary? Are
there any dangers in this approach?
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