I was never fortunate enough to meet Dr. King, but I was a member of the vast crowd that stood on the Mall when he spoke to the March on Washington on August 28, 1963. I became a good friend of his close aide Bayard Rustin, who like Dr. King, was eloquent and passionate about justice.
Dr. King was frequently criticized by friends and foes. The foes thought he was a dangerous agitator who was encouraging rebellion against the social order, which he was. Moderates said he was pushing too hard, too fast, for too much, at the wrong time and the wrong place. Some who should have been his friends said he wasn’t sufficiently radical; they said he was too cerebral, too willing to compromise, out of touch with the masses that were ready to engage in violence. Dr. King believed in nonviolence as a principle, not as a strategy. He believed in justice and equality as principles, not as temporary goals. Some of his erstwhile allies turned to Malcolm X, who did not share Dr. King’s commitment to nonviolence.
On this day set aside to remember Dr. King, read or watch one of his speeches. Think about the courage it required to stand up for the oppressed, to face death every day, and to do so in a spirit of love.
The March on Washington speech
His speech against the war in Vietnam, which caused some of his allies to turn against him.
I have been to the mountaintop speech, his last speech, delivered the day before he was assassinated. At the time, he was in Memphis, where he had come to help sanitation workers who were trying to form a union to advocate for better wages. This speech was prophetic. Whenever someone from the .001% claims that they are engaged in the struggle for civil rights and simultaneously attacking unions, I remember why Dr. King was in Memphis.
And here are more, from a CNN piece that asks whether you can identify any of Dr. King’s speeches other than “I have a dream,” or his “Letter from a Birmingham City Jail,” both of which are taught in school.
The usual suspects tried to discredit King by saying that he was a communist, a communist sympathizer, a useful idiot or all of the above. McCarthyism never dies in this country, it’s still used today to smear and defame liberals, progressives and teachers’ unions. Heck, that right wing loon Harlan Underhill pops up every so often and accuses us of being commucrats or whatever term he uses. It’s a disgusting ploy and destroys any possibility of having an intelligent discussion. King was an incredibly brave man who had the courage to speak out against racism, inequality and the Vietnam war. He accomplished so much in his brief 39 years.
Joe
As Lufgren would say Democrats have ceded the argument to the right . First by not cleaning our own house and secondly by not using language.
While Trump was leading the chants of “lock her up” we witnessed a wonderfully executed Hollywood production. What it did not do is speak to the anger that existed not only in the Midwest but in working-class (lets not kid ourselves 80% +are working class) communities through out the nation. Many of those counties had voted for Obama not once but twice.
So now that we have what appears to be an authoritarian Fascist
what language will he be framed in . Will we see the normalization of Trump or will we see a clear message of rejection. Perhaps we have to clean our house first .
His books and speeches are still relevant today which to me is sign of a true prophet. My favorite speech is the Vietnam one. It rings clearly in today’s world. He must never be forgotten. Thank you for posting the links.
Here’s a thoughtful reflection for the day:
“Let King’s legacy be that we were loved by him. We were loved for our beauty, our strength, our resilience, our creativity, and yes — even our anger. King’s love for us brought a privileged, middle-class preacher to dedicate his life to political and economic revolution, for social upheaval. It was a love that he was willing to lose his life for. And it was a love that we did not have to earn; it was a love we were bestowed simply because we are. And we continue to be loved today.
If we can honor King’s memory, let’s do it by refusing to let the powers that be posthumously place pre-qualifiers of respectability on King’s love for us, and by refusing to let them ascribe a passivity and complacency to King that he never had in life.”
https://theestablishment.co/the-exploitation-of-martin-luther-kings-legacy-by-white-supremacy-1b3e95c1d213#.f0etfp4ug
“I’ve seen my dream shattered as I’ve walked the streets of Chicago and see Negroes, young men and women, with a sense of utter hopelessness because they can’t find any jobs. … I’ve seen my dream shattered as I’ve been through Appalachia, and I’ve seen my white brothers along with Negroes living in poverty. And I’m concerned about white
poverty as much as I’m concerned about Negro poverty.”
When we have political leaders who believe this and lead and run on economic injustice rather than identity politics , we will shake the oligarchy to its boots.
Unless we can get money out of politics, there is little hope that the will of the people will prevail. There are few politicians like Bernie that are willing to tackle the economic disparities.
Vice President Biden suggested public financing of political campaigns many years ago in his autobiography “Promises to Keep”. I was delighted when VP Biden was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, for his lifetime of public service ( he is the youngest man ever elected to the US Senate). I still remember his dignified and balanced chairing of the hearings for Clarence Thomas confirmation.
I think VP Biden is great man, and a dedicated public servant. I wish him well.
(BTW- I am a rock-ribbed Republican, and a Trump supporter)
Those economic disparities are the only thing that counts. Because the rest is part of the subject of economics from civil rights to gay rights. What do I care what someone cares about my life style if it takes no food off of my plate! I believe I am paraphrasing somebody..
“What good is having the right to sit at a lunch counter if you can’t afford to buy a hamburger?” MLK
Reading King’s speeches, you can hear the cadences rise and fall. You can understand the connections his powerful mind makes among things that seem unconnected and disparate. His references, biblical and literary, educate. Robert Kennedy, changed and educated by King’s actions, had the ability to do the same. In his eloquent speech in Indianapolis, when he announced that Dr. King had been murdered in Memphis, Kennedy quoted Aeschylus, in whom he took comfort from his brother’s death.
The inane David Coleman, in his “close reading” of “Letter From A Birmingham Jail” would hollow out the import of King’s message, requiring children to “remain within the four corners of the text,” leaving them without any context to understand King, those times, those circumstances. It is this that makes the reformistas so dangerous to our society – ignorance becomes the new knowledge.
In a democracy, we need our leaders to educate by example and by word.
Words matter, for they are all we have to connect with one another.
Christine Langhoff
Very true but as revolting as the Dump will be . Our present POTUS has used very pretty words to disguise some pretty poor policy . Some may say the same of Mr Clinton .
http://www.truthdig.com/staff/paul_street
The Beyond Vietnam speech, was his most compelling one…. and most overlooked because it speaks to how far short we’ve fallen. https://waynegersen.com/2017/01/16/martin-luther-king-juniors-other-speech/