“ A law is unjust if it is inflicted on a minority that, as a result of being denied the right to vote, had no part in enacting or devising the law. ”
Martin Luther King, Jr., Letter from a Birmingham Jail (16 April 1963). copy citation
| Author | Martin Luther King, Jr. |
|---|---|
| Source | Letter from a Birmingham Jail |
| Topic | vote law |
| Date | 16 April 1963 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | https://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html |
Context
“This is difference made legal. By the same token, a just law is a code that a majority compels a minority to follow and that it is willing to follow itself. This is sameness made legal. Let me give another explanation. A law is unjust if it is inflicted on a minority that, as a result of being denied the right to vote, had no part in enacting or devising the law. Who can say that the legislature of Alabama which set up that state's segregation laws was democratically elected? Throughout Alabama all sorts of devious methods are used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters, and there are some counties in which, even though Negroes constitute a majority of the population, not a single Negro is registered.”
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