Martin Luther King Jr. frequently looked up inspiration from Biblical sources, ancient philosophers and theologians.
In his "<em>Letter from a Birmingham Jail</em>", Martin Luther King Jr. resort to Socrates to highlight his practice of afair form of civil disobedience and non violence, as a symbol or analogy to back up his interjection outlining the urge of awakening from the "<em>dark depths of prejudice and racism</em>" of society at that time.
In the letter, MLK Jr. outlines that "<em>Socrates felt that it was necessary to create a tension in the mind</em>", so individuals could rise from darkness; and he felt the same kind of tension was necessary at that time so that society could rise from the darkness of prejudice to a place of "<em>understanding and brotherhood</em>".
