Final answer:
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his followers attempted to negotiate with local government officials and business leaders to address racial injustice before taking to the streets in protest. These negotiations often failed, leading to demonstrations that could be met with violence, yet they upheld the principle of nonviolent resistance as a core tactic for the movement.
Step-by-step explanation:
Before resorting to street protests, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his followers engaged in attempts to negotiate with various entities including local government officials, business leaders, and other influential stakeholders to address the issues of racial segregation and injustice. These efforts for peaceful resolution often preceded the more visible civil disobedience actions individuals like Dr. King are famous for. As a proponent of nonviolence, Dr. King believed in civil discourse before demonstrating in the streets, hoping that mutual understanding would facilitate the end of racial discrimination.
Nonetheless, these negotiations were frequently unsuccessful, leading to demonstrations that were sometimes met with violence from police and opposition groups. For example, during the Birmingham campaign, King was arrested, and the peaceful protest was met with violence by police. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), led by Dr. King, was instrumental in organizing these forms of protest including the famous Montgomery Bus boycott initiated by Rosa Parks' iconic stand, and consistently upheld the strategy of nonviolent resistance, even in the face of escalating violence from entities such as the Ku Klux Klan and local law enforcement.
Despite the challenges, this continued adherence to nonviolence proved essential for rallying public support and eventually brought about significant legislative changes, although it also made leaders like Dr. King targets for criticism both from opponents of the civil rights movement and from within the movement itself, by more militant factions that emerged later on.