By staging a boycott, African Americans in Montgomery had made a conscious decision to make their own lives more
difficult. Because they no longer could ride the bus, their days were filled with more headaches. They made great
sacrifices. Beyond that, they needed to resist the urge to respond in ways that might have undermined their cause.
Martin Luther King Jr. spoke to the crowd at the weekly meeting of the Montgomery Improvement Association and
discussed the importance of determination and maintaining "moral and spiritual fortitude."
Search the internet for excerpts from this speech. Use the space below to take notes summarizing the key messages in
King's speech
"Every valley shall exalt, hill and mountain made low, rough places made plain, crooked made straight, glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all Flesh shall see together!" Isiah 40:4-5
