A Time to Break Silence Summary and Analysis

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke against the war in Vietnam, agreeing that, "A time comes when silence is betrayal" (p. 231). He observed that the issues were complex and difficult to understand. Dr. King saw peace and civil rights on the same plane of existence. Both situations were conflicts that could never be resolved by violence, nor without give and take in an atmosphere of trust. Of greater importance was the heavy cost on both continents.

Dr. King considered the cost of war directly reduced the available money for social issues. The programs in place to provide help to the poor lost importance and funding. Dr. King's experiences in the ghettos of the North caused him to realize that he could no longer speak out against violence and oppression without speaking out against...