Social Movements are only as important as the person leading them. The person(s) leading a social movement must have charisma and be able to captivate an audience. Political scientists and historians are taught to analyze body language, especially during debates and speeches.

in Dr. Martin Luther King's I Have a Dream speech and a speech by Alicia Garza of the Black Lives Matter movement and answer questions listed below. Pay special attention to the following aspects in the two speeches.

• Importance of body language while delivering the speech.
• Gestures, cadence and delivery style.

Answer the following

1. Provide a summary of the two speeches.
2. Compare Dr. King's leadership, charisma, power and passion to capture his audience to Alicia Garza's speech. What are the similarities, if any? What are the differences, if any?
3. How does the location of the speeches support their messaging? Dr. King's speech was held in a church and at the Lincoln Memorial, whereas today we have social networking and more avenues to relay messages. Does messaging make a difference?
4. Describe how the audience in Dr. King's speeches relate to the Alicia Garza's audience. Do you see a similarity or differences in the speeches and in the audience?

 

Answer:

Martin Luther King Jr. gave a powerful speech in 1963 during a memorable Civil rights movement demonstration that was held in Washington. The speech "I Have a Dream" was a message about justice and freedom for the black Americans who were oppressed and segregated from the larger American society.  Dr. King gave reference to the US constitution and the declaration that was made during independence that guaranteed all Americans will be equal and free to move and interact as one people. 

Alicia Garza on the other hand gave a speech on the subject "black lives matter", a movement that she co-foundered in 2013 to respond to police brutality that was targeting the black community in America. Alicia's speech focused on rights of domestic worker, issues of gender, against racism, call for action to end police brutality among other human rights violations. In addition, Alicia in her speech gave a background history of racial injustice that the black lives matter movement believe as their ideology and the action from the the government to address the issues. 

Comparing the speech from Dr. King and Alicia, there are similarities while delivering the speech. Both moved their hands as a way of communicating and emphasize a point, the use facial expression by  Dr. King and Alicia was present. Every time a painful experience is mentioned or the the background of injustice, their facial expressions sympathized with the situation. In addition, their facial expression at some point was full of hope that something good will come out of the fight. This was so clear from Dr. King. 

Furthermore, Dr. King's speech is full of energy, power and there no doubt that the audience connected with him because of how he conveyed his message. Martin Luther is know to a charismatic leader who connected easily and his influence was contagious at any given point in his fight for civil rights for the African Americans. Dr. King delivered his message so passionately that the audience were moved and convinced that there is hope in the fight for equality. His voice was full of power and he emphasized every line of his speech by projecting where necessary. Martin's speech was full facts and real issues that people were going through and he mentioned  that all people are equal whether white or black. This kind of message captured the attention of the audience because it was not one sided. His body language was full of grace and energy and hope his dream will one day come true.

Contrasting it with Alicia Garza speech on black lives matter, her speech was not full of power and passion as it ought to be or like the case of Dr. King. She spoke so politely that any political scientist would be reluctant to connect easily. Her voice was not full of power and energy and the audience were not applauding every moment as in the speech of Dr. King. 

The location of the speech by Dr. King was significant and supported his messaging because Abraham Lincoln is remembered for his fight for freedom for all slaves. He led Americans during the time of civil war. Dr. King choose this location to sent a clear message that the constitution and the declaration made by their former President should be obeyed. In addition, Martin Luther choose to convey his message in Church because he believed all human beings are equal and created by God and so there is no need for racism, hate and slavery. Such injustices were not in line with the Biblical teaching as interpreted by Luther in his fight for freedom. 

With the rise of technology, the way information is conveyed today is different. Social media or networks have become a powerful space where people can interact and mobilize each other as fast as possible. Therefore, the space matters and makes a difference. It is also important to say that Americans love history and treasure how their histories have evolved over time. If today a civil right activist goes back to convey their message in the same place as Dr. King, it will capture the attention of many. There is something iconic or symbolic monuments of great leaders who fought for human rights. 

To conclude, the audience in Dr. King's speech connected easily and powerfully to the speech made by Luther. This is because of the passion, power and energy that sank down to the minds and bodies of the people. In Alicia's speech, the audience did not connect much as compared to Dr. Kings speech. The speech was not that powerful and convincing in terms of body language. She spoke so politely to the extend that the audience could easily fall as sleep. Therefore, body language matters when delivering speeches and during debates and this in turn affects how the audience connect or relate with the speaker.