By. One may well ask, 'How can you advocate breaking some laws and obeying others?' 60 Years on, Kings Letter From Birmingham Jail Relevant as Ever, They are also called persuasive appeals. You speak of our activity in Birmingham as extreme. By their effort and example they brought an end to such ancient evils as infanticide and gladiatorial contests. And I am further convinced that if our white brothers dismiss as "rabble rousers" and "outside agitators" those of us who employ nonviolent direct action, and if they refuse to support our nonviolent efforts, millions of Negroes will, out of frustration and despair, seek solace and security in black nationalist ideologies--a development that would inevitably lead to a frightening racial nightmare. Martin Luther King Jr. used ethos by convincing his audience that he was an expert on the topic of civil rights. Christianity and Morality Theme in Letter from Birmingham Jail The resulting letter is arguably one of the best defenses of civil disobedience in the English language. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored. It was "illegal" to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitler's Germany. Letter from Birmingham Jail The Letter from a Birmingham Jail is a response to an open letter written by eight clergymen in Birmingham criticizing the actions and peaceful protests of Martin Luther King Jr. King Jr. used the points outlined in the letter to create the foundation of his response and to meticulously address and counter their assertions. We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. Something within has reminded him of his birthright of freedom, and something without has reminded him that it can be gained. Now, what is the difference between the two? A just law is a man-made code that squares with the moral law, or the law of God. The Rhetorical Situation of Letter from Birmingham Jail