Why We Can't Wait

In Chapter Six, King continues his narration of the most intense phase of the civil rights campaign in Birmingham. After their release from jail, King and other leaders plan their response to the legal cases against protestors for breaking the injunctions. Another important development is the SCLC’s decision to seek greater engagement with young people.

While most of the civil rights campaigns with which King had been involved were dominated by young people, Birmingham’s protestors tended to be adults. King knew that there was a danger of criticism if he recruited young people, but he was convinced at the time that their involvement would lead to greater success and provide young people with a way of participating in their own liberation.

Important staff members began to go out to talk to students in afterschool meetings specifically designed to reach young people. The response was overwhelming. Subsequent meetings focused on training in the philosophy of nonviolence and the importance of discipline. In retrospect, King believes that involving young people was “one of the wisest moves” they made in Birmingham (115).

As expected, there were objections to the involvement of young people. The national media attacked the decision to use children, causing a negative shift in the increasingly positive coverage the media gave to the protests in Birmingham.