Our aim must be to win his friendship and his understanding.

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Source: A Realistic Look at the Question of Progress in the Area of Race Relations (1957)

About this quote

In A Realistic Look at the Question of Progress in the Area of Race Relations (1957), King uses a direct appeal to responsibility to examine wisdom, with attention to friendship, understanding. The practical center is the relationship between life and friendship and understanding, giving readers a specific lens for judgment and action.

When to use it

  • A community organizer builds a meeting around friendship before participants choose one measurable action related to wisdom.
  • A teacher pairs the passage from A Realistic Look at the Question of Progress in the Area of Race Relations (1957) with a primary-source exercise about life and public responsibility.
  • A team leader uses the tension between understanding and understanding to discuss conduct under pressure.