Final answer:
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. advocated the principle that one should be willing to face the consequences of breaking an unjust law, as part of nonviolent civil disobedience. This approach was a cornerstone of the Civil Rights Movement and highlighted in King's 'Letter from a Birmingham Jail'. The correct option is a.
Step-by-step explanation:
The principle advocated by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is that one who breaks an unjust law must be willing to pay the penalty. This concept is part of the broader strategy of nonviolent civil disobedience that King and other civil rights leaders employed in their fight against racial segregation and injustice.
During the Civil Rights Movement, King was influenced by the teachings of Gandhi and others, focusing on peaceful forms of protest such as marches, sit-ins, and boycotts, all the while emphasizing the importance of accepting the legal consequences of violating unjust laws to highlight their immorality and to spur societal change.
Dr. King outlined these ideas in his famous "Letter from a Birmingham Jail," where he responded to criticism of his tactics and elaborated on the necessity of nonviolent direct action against unjust laws and the willingness to suffer the consequences to awaken the conscience of the community.
He believed that through such action, alongside changing the hearts of people, unjust laws would ultimately be changed. The correct option is a