Author: King Jr. , Martin Luther
Publisher: American Friends Service Committee
First Printing dated May, 1963. 15pp. Just slightly rubbed and tanned with a light, tiny crease to the edge of the rear, else a near fine copy in publisher’s stapled wraps, Written by King while he was imprisoned in Birmingham, Alabama, the letter responds to a statement made by eight white clergymen who had criticized the civil rights protests and called for patience and calm. King argued that the protests were necessary for the civil rights movement, and that the clergymen’s call for patience was actually a call for inaction in the face of injustice. He also argued that the segregation laws in Birmingham were unjust and violated the principles of Christianity.