They were in the majority, in the role of power. It was a great opportunity to illustrate how stupid racism is, to point out the silliness of the situation, how ludicrous it was. For the first time, through the police presence and their reports, the white establishment had a chance to hear about and to learn about the Black viewpoint. Perhaps as a consequence, Withycombe believes, one day during the protest white police officers and firemen refused to turn fire hoses on a crowd of Black protesters. In Birmingham, this became the turning point.
Rhetoric is the study of argument, of talk.
You can imagine a world different from Birmingham. You can imagine a different world and advocate for change. Even bleak and violent situations can be changed through talk. Talk is action. In Alabama, they talked through a problem.