Neutrality in the Concept of Essay

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And his group of followers were denied permits to hold peaceful marches through the towns of some southern states. The basis for the withholding of those permits was entirely "lawful" because the decision to do so fell within the guidelines of the city officials. The laws themselves were neutral. However, the decision as to how to apply those laws (and from whom their benefit was withheld) was made on the basis of race, making them violations of procedural due process. As Reverend King explained in his 1964 Letter from a Birmingham Jail, written after his arrest for demonstrating without a permit:

"Sometimes a law is just on its face and unjust in its application. For instance, I

have been arrested on a charge of parading without a permit. Now, there is nothing wrong in having an ordinance which requires a permit for a parade.

But such an ordinance becomes unjust when it is used to maintain segregation

and to deny citizens the First Amendment privilege of peaceful assembly and protest.
"

Reverend King also explained the concept of substantive due process in the same eloquent work. In that regard, he was responding to the argument that had been put forth against his objection to segregation that segregation was the so-called "law of the land" and that it was entitled to be rightfully upheld because it had been produced by the formal legislative process:

"A law is unjust if it is inflicted on a minority that, as a result of being denied the right to vote, had no part in enacting or devising the law. Who can say that the legislature of Alabama which set up that state's segregation laws was democratically elected?"

Source Consulted

Goldfield, D., Abbot, C., Argersinger, J., and Argersinger, P. (2005). Twentieth-Century

America: A Social and Political History. Upper….....

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