The Civil Rights Movement was a time in the United States when African Americans began actively demanding equality for themselves. It was a movement to end prejudice and segregation against blacks so that African Americans could live as freely as whites. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a very popular civil rights leader during the civil rights movement, is considered one of the most influential people during this time due to his method of achieving equality. Dr. King believed that the only way to end segregation and achieve equality was to resist nonviolently using the principle of love as a foundation. His belief in this method of nonviolent resistance through an ethic of love stemmed from his Christian faith and Gandhi. Dr. King's ethic of love helped establish nonviolent resistance and integrationism because it allowed oppressed African Americans to feel understanding, acceptance, and love for their white oppressor. Without the ethic of love, nonviolent resistance and integrationism would not have been possible. During the time of the civil rights movement, there was a lot of violence and prejudice against blacks. Some violence included church bombings and lynchings, and some examples of prejudice included segregation and prejudicial laws. A young Martin Luther King Jr. describes an injurious situation he recalls between his father and a clerk while waiting in a shoe store: "I'll be happy to serve you if you'll move to those seats in the back." The clerk said politely. “There is nothing wrong with these places. We are quite comfortable here,” the minister [King Sr.] responded. “I'm sorry,” the clerk said, “but you'll have to move” (Ramsay, Four Modern Prophets 29). The situation was prejudicial......middle of paper......n attacked by them. The ethic of love towards other African Americans allows them not to retaliate because of the love they feel for their African American brothers and sisters. As African Americans seek to win the fight for integration, they cannot be selfish in wanting to protect themselves through self-defense. They must think about sacrificing themselves for the greater good of their oppressed people. When faced with an issue such as self-defense, the ethic of love is necessary to overcome such an obstacle and support nonviolent resistance. Work cited King, Martin Luther and James Melvin. Washington. A testament of hope. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1991. Print.Ramsay, William M. Four Modern Prophets: Walter Rauschenbusch, Martin Luther King, Jr., Gustavo Gutierrez, Rosemary Radford Ruether. Atlanta, GA: John Knox, 1986. Print.