Was it divine intervention or simply righteousness that made the infamous “Letter from Birmingham Jail” such a timeless, profound, and life-changing work? Dwayne Betts A previous EconTalk episode featured Betts, a great friend and guest of Russ Roberts, who is so present in the moment and inspired by the beauty, truth and humility of the great Martin Luther King that his voice sometimes trembles as he answers Roberts’ questions. In this episodeHe talks about his own moment in history and the impact King’s work has had on him.
Betts’ nine years in prison and his remarkable journey since then give him unique qualifications as a King family recommended author. Letter from Birmingham Jail (Martin Luther King Jr.’s seminal speech)We hope this conversation has inspires your own thoughts about freedom, and we would love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below.
1- Roberts and Betts revisited King’s great speech and each evaluated it in a different way. Roberts calls it King’s love letter to justice to the country. “Letter from Birmingham Jail” Martin Luther King Jr. you Did you notice something you probably didn’t remember?
2- How does Betts argue that the urgent letter that Dr. King sent in response to criticism of his nonviolent protests was a tribute to the criticism of eight clergymen?
3- Betts mentions the difficulty of debating contemporary issues with confidence, saying, “I find it much harder to articulate what the right side looks like.” To what extent do you agree with this statement? What example would you use to illustrate it?
4- “Turning regret into feathers” vs. “Economics explains everything except justice.” John Rawls (not Robert Nozick) is in the Free Library of Prisons at 340. Faced with a sense of “anonymity,” which conversation would you rather continue at dinner and why?
