Document 1: A Time to Break the Silence

Document 1 is the speech that Martin Luther King. delivered at the Clergy and Laymen Concerned About Vietnam event on April 4, 1967.  In the speech, King presents three reasons for speaking out against the war in Vietnam: 1) America was spending its money on the war in Vietnam instead of helping its own citizens escape poverty, 2) black and white men were dying together despite their differences at home, and 3) the government's use of violence to solve its problems was beginning to influence the American public.  Question 4 asks what King was suggesting about our nation's priorities and whether poverty and economic injustice were religious issues or civil rights issues.  Based on his speech, I think Martin Luther King was suggesting that our nations should have set its priorities straight.  In his opinion, domestic poverty was more important than foreign affairs.  He felt that Americans efforts in Vietnam were more destructive than progressive.  In the 1960's, many African Americans were living in poverty, so this issue was close to home for King.  Also, because he promoted non-violence, it only seemed natural that he would speak out against the war.  Even though Dr. King was a spokesperson for both religion and Civil Rights, I think poverty and Vietnam fall more under the Civil Rights category.  Both issues affected people of all colors and had a large impact on society.  The only way religion might have played in would have been soldiers praying for safety in war, or the poor asking God to help them survive everyday life.  Martin Luther King had every right to voice his opinions regarding these issues, especially since they both directly affected the causes he fought for.