Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community by Martin Luther King, Jr. Book Analysis

📌Category: Books, Historical Figures, History, Human rights, Social Issues
📌Words: 1464
📌Pages: 6
📌Published: 05 February 2022

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a minister and leader of the African American Civil Rights movements of the 1950s and 1960s. He advanced Civil Rights for African Americans through his use of non-violent protests and marches through a heavily segregated Southern United States. Dr. King fought heavily for the advancement of rights for African Americans and against Jim Crow laws in the South. 

In 1967, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had written his last book “ Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community.” before being assassinated in April of 1968. In his book, Dr. King detailed both his thoughts and experiences with the non-violent Civils Rights movements. He described the challenges faced by him and his supporters as well as the constructs that made up a heavily segregated and divided South. He explains what “Black Power” is, and what its supporters stand for. He explains the dilemma of Negro Americans and the challenge they faced every day from racism to socio-economic issues during this time. Dr. King then elaborated on the direction of our society and how we could strive towards a future where society is color blind and fully integrated, not to the benefit of just one race but all. In addition, King stated the need for all races to live in peace as he stated we all live one big “World House.” He was right to believe that all races could live as one, yet even 54 years later there is still lots of work to be done in the name of achieving King’s dreams of a fully integrated society. 

Dr. Martin Luther King was a great believer in a fully integrated society where races were not discriminated against and all were treated equally and held equal power. His vision included all races and people from different backgrounds, living in a society where coexistence was possible not discriminated against. A society where moral progress was bridged with scientific progress to solve society’s problems. To further explain, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stated “We have inherited a large house, a great “world house” in which we have to live together- black and white, Easterner and Westerner, Gentile, and Jew, Catholic and Protestant, Muslim and Hindu- a family unduly separated in ideas, culture, and interest, who, because we can never again live apart, must learn somehow to live in with each other in peace. (King, Pg. 173).” This highlights Dr. King’s opinion on what a racially integrated society would look like as he explains the inevitability of including every race, every religion, and people all across the globe. He asserts that we have inherited a great “world house” not by choice but by fate as people of all different backgrounds have populated the world. Thus, an integrated society is one where people are willing to coexist and help those out in need regardless of race or skin color. It’s a society that must live in peace because separation will never be physically possible according to King. Furthermore, Dr. King also states that 

“The Deep rumbling of discontent that we hear today is the thunder of disinherited masses, rising from dungeons of oppression to the bright hills of freedom. In one majestic chorus the rising masses are singing, in the words of our freedom song, “Ain't gonna let nobody turn us around.” All over the world like a fever, freedom is spreading in the widest liberation movement in history. The great masses of people are determined to end the exploitation of their races and lands. (King, Pg 179)” 

Dr. King implies that a racially just and fully integrated society promotes the same values among all people and consistently works to unite and not divide its citizens in the name of the greater good. He makes the assertion that this type of society will focus on social justice and helping all people regardless of race or skin color.  Dr. King would like to create a society that is not held down by problems like wealth gaps, widespread discrimination, and the overall division caused by years of wrong teachings and misinformation.  Dr. King then goes on to also say “The first step in the worldwide war against poverty is passionate commitment. All the wealthy nations- America, Britain, Russia, Canada, Australia, and those in Western Europe- must see it as a moral obligation to provide capital and technical assistance to the underdeveloped areas.” He asserts that in a fully just and integrated society the poor cannot be left behind. The rich nations must provide for their people regardless of class or identity. He continues by saying that man has adopted an attitude that relishes independence but not helping those who need it the most. Overall, Dr. King believes a fully integrated society involves equality among races, equal distribution of wealth, and constant innovation to fix the past and create a better tomorrow.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr had expressed in his book “ Where Do We Go From Here: Community or Chaos” that a full racially just society would include the elimination of poverty, equality for all races and constant innovation to fix, and non-violent coexistence. I think these remain the proper ideals for a racially just and fully integrated society for a multitude of reasons. To start, Dr. King states 

“A true revolution of value will soon cause us to question the fairness and justice of many of our past and present policies. We are called to play Good Samaritan on life’s roadside, but that will be only an initial act. One day the whole Jericho Road must be transformed so that men and women will not be beaten and robbed as they make their journey through life. True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it understands that an edifice that produces beggars needs restructuring. ” 

This highlights why I believe that Dr. King’s ideals are those suited for a fully integrated society because he acknowledged the need to change the past as well as present laws and committed himself to benefit the entire population. In addition, his ideas on eliminating poverty have withstood the test of time because although it’s been 54 years, nothing has changed significantly. The homeless still line the street corners and millions of Americans still rely on welfare to get by. It connects to his statement, in which he asserted the need to restructure our economic system to eliminate poverty and help those in need,  to prevent the creation of beggars. Furthermore, I believe that King’s ideals do set the tone for a racially just society because he continually mentions that we all live in one great “world house” comprised of all types of people. There is no way to leave this “house” so we need to learn how to peacefully coexist in brotherhood and help one another instead of trying to tear each other down. To this day, racism still exists as we continue to try and build a racially just society but with hope, yet with resilience, we will one day be able to reach King’s vision of a modern racially just society. 

To create a fully racially just society there would have to be many changes to existing conditions. The first change would have to be to the economic structure in our country which pits the poor against the rich and allows for millions of Americans to suffer because of inadequate wages and inflated prices. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in his book asserts that “There is nothing to prevent us from paying adequate wages to school to schoolteachers, social workers, and other servants of the public to ensure that we have the best available personnel of guiding our future generations.” This explains why the economic structure in the United States must be changed because it doesn’t provide the opportunity to succeed and leaves many American’s unable to provide for themselves let alone their families. It puts them in positions to fail and continue to work jobs that provide no benefits and allow them no say. This system allows for the exploitation of the poor by paying them next to nothing causing them to not afford school, and other necessities to reverse the cycle.  To further explain, we need to improve education for all students to provide them with the best chances of success in the real world. Education is power and separates people who hold decent jobs from those who don’t. It emancipates people from their ordinary lives and gives them a higher chance of success. As stated by Dr. King “this comes at a time when education is more than ever the passport to decent economic positions.” Furthermore, this explains why the education system must be reformed because it is no longer suited for today’s ever-changing world and must change with our society. In addition, another issue that must be solved and eradicated is racism. While we’ve done many things to combat it through the law, we must do more to educate those around us and rip out the weeds that remain from those before us. 

To sum it all up, Dr. King’s idea of a racially just and fully integrated society includes the elimination of poverty, equality for all races and constant innovation to fix, and non-violent coexistence. His vision is still plausible to this day as our society still lacks many important aspects and requires dire change. To achieve this change we would need to alter the economic structure of our country, improve education and wages, and focus on limiting discrimination.

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