King
Martin Luther King was assassinated when I was a college student. I heard the radio report of his death on a car radio, as I rode with three friends. We were all working-class, white and male. The profound silence in the car, punctuated by the occasional sigh, is still a palpable memory.
Like many others of my generation, I grew up with images of the Civil Rights struggle which Dr. King came to represent. Our parents often spoke unsympathetically of the demonstrations and speeches of that movement. But, my peers and I were inspired by Dr. King and his peers. They were our teachers. When the Peace Movement blossomed out of the Civil Rights Movement, we knew what needed to be done. We took to the streets in peaceful dissent. We exposed the military-industrial complex for what it is: Murder and enslavement for profit. The symbolic massacre at Kent State drew hundreds of thousands of bystanders into the streets with us, just as the murder of Dr. King brought bystanders into the Civil Rights struggle. Later, the murder of Harvey Milk brought bystanders into the Gay Rights Movement.
Dr. King was not a social entrepreneur. He did not punch a clock or focus on balance sheets. He did not travel Business Class on a non-profit corporation's expense account. He rode buses with his fellow demonstrators. He stayed in cheap motels, like the one where he died. His life was dedicated to his cause. He did not Tweet or just show up on Sunday morning TV panels. He showed up where he was needed with his full energy and attention.
This morning I heard the current African-American President urge citizens to participate in community service today in honor of Dr. King's memory. Community service? Rather than speaking to the current inequalities in the country he administers, this man urges citizens to do community service on the day which commemorates Dr. King's life and work? Does he believe that Dr. King would approve of him urging the populace to accept the status quo by propping it up with food banks and soup kitchens? Is he honoring a sanitized, middle-class Dr. King, instead of the dedicated socialist who was maligned and persecuted by the U.S. government as Communist? Perhaps he is. After all, our current President has proven to be more pro-establishment than pro-people, in my opinion
This day I honor the memory of Dr. King by appreciating the good he did in my life. I thank him for opening my eyes to the unfairness of capitalism. I thank him for encouraging me to not accept being talked down to by those with more money, more genetic provenance or more political power. I thank him for making me understand that poor people are constantly being played against each other by the wealthy for their own purposes, as we see with the exploitation of illegal immigrants today. I thank him for teaching me that peaceful, intelligent dissent is ultimately stronger than brutality. Finally, I thank him for showing me that a life spent trying relentlessly to improve the human condition is its own reward, whether it ends in untimely death or in old age.
Like many others of my generation, I grew up with images of the Civil Rights struggle which Dr. King came to represent. Our parents often spoke unsympathetically of the demonstrations and speeches of that movement. But, my peers and I were inspired by Dr. King and his peers. They were our teachers. When the Peace Movement blossomed out of the Civil Rights Movement, we knew what needed to be done. We took to the streets in peaceful dissent. We exposed the military-industrial complex for what it is: Murder and enslavement for profit. The symbolic massacre at Kent State drew hundreds of thousands of bystanders into the streets with us, just as the murder of Dr. King brought bystanders into the Civil Rights struggle. Later, the murder of Harvey Milk brought bystanders into the Gay Rights Movement.Dr. King was not a social entrepreneur. He did not punch a clock or focus on balance sheets. He did not travel Business Class on a non-profit corporation's expense account. He rode buses with his fellow demonstrators. He stayed in cheap motels, like the one where he died. His life was dedicated to his cause. He did not Tweet or just show up on Sunday morning TV panels. He showed up where he was needed with his full energy and attention.
This morning I heard the current African-American President urge citizens to participate in community service today in honor of Dr. King's memory. Community service? Rather than speaking to the current inequalities in the country he administers, this man urges citizens to do community service on the day which commemorates Dr. King's life and work? Does he believe that Dr. King would approve of him urging the populace to accept the status quo by propping it up with food banks and soup kitchens? Is he honoring a sanitized, middle-class Dr. King, instead of the dedicated socialist who was maligned and persecuted by the U.S. government as Communist? Perhaps he is. After all, our current President has proven to be more pro-establishment than pro-people, in my opinion
This day I honor the memory of Dr. King by appreciating the good he did in my life. I thank him for opening my eyes to the unfairness of capitalism. I thank him for encouraging me to not accept being talked down to by those with more money, more genetic provenance or more political power. I thank him for making me understand that poor people are constantly being played against each other by the wealthy for their own purposes, as we see with the exploitation of illegal immigrants today. I thank him for teaching me that peaceful, intelligent dissent is ultimately stronger than brutality. Finally, I thank him for showing me that a life spent trying relentlessly to improve the human condition is its own reward, whether it ends in untimely death or in old age.
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