The author uses detail descriptions of the Birmingham boycotts and lunch counter sit-in demonstrations to illustrate the effective use of nonviolence in the civil rights movement. The city is controlled by the racist Bull Connor in the summer of 1963. His rule is proof of continuing slavery. Connor is eventually put out of power by social changes declared in the Emancipation Proclamation and realized through Civil Rights Movement activities. MLK presents this story to show how, why and where the American Negro can no longer wait. Any reader interested in Negro, but also the civil rights of any citizen can benefit from an understanding of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s writing.