UPDATE: As always, thanks for stopping by folks. See you next week!
Today, we celebrate the life and achievements of Dr. King. Around the country, talk will turn to the legacy he left us, and whether or not we’re living up to his Dream.
While it’s laudable that we’re still seeking to create a more just society where citizens of all races are welcomed and honored, it’s a national shame that, almost 40 years after he was taken from us, we still aren’t where we need to be.
How is it that New Orleans is still not rebuilt? How does it happen that high school dropout rates are still twice as high among African-American students as they are among white students? How is it that the Census says a black or Latino student is more likely to end up living in a penitentiary than a dormitory? And how on earth did we let gun violence among minorities get so out of control?
Dr. King reminded us in 1963 that
We must be careful at this point not to engage in a superficial optimism or to conclude that the death of a particular evil means that all evil lies dead upon the seashore. All progress is precarious, and the solution of one problem brings us face to face with another problem. The Kingdom of God as a universal reality is not yet.
Part of why I became involved with the NAACP here in Maine—ultimately serving as Vice President—is that I believe Dr. King was right that there is always another step to take. For too long, too many good-hearted people have dismissed the need for further progress in racial healing because it seemed as if we had come so far. And, truth be told, our country has made amazing progress in the last fifty years, thanks largely to the impact of Dr. King. But having come far doesn’t mean the journey is over, or that we can afford to slow down.
It’s easy for all of us to go about our daily lives believing that racial insensitivity and injustice is not very prevalent here in Maine. But it is.
Nearly forty years after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, all of us need to take a good hard look at the facts. And while we can take pleasure in the progress we’ve made, we have to acknowledge the reality that many people in our state face racial bias and prejudice on a daily basis, and it affects all of us.
When the NAACP in Bangor had to cancel its Kwanzaa celebration in Bangor last month due to racial threats, that affects all of us.
When political candidates use the issue of illegal immigration to further their careers, barely disguising their own intolerance and fanning the flames of intolerance in others, that affects all of us.
When fully half of the documented violations of the Maine Civil Rights Act over the last three years involve racial bias and prejudice, that affects all of us.
It affects all of us because it gives our state a black eye. It sends a message that Maine is not an open, tolerant state.
I know, deep down, that’s not true. But it takes vigilance on the part of our elected leaders and every individual to condemn prejudice when it happens, point the finger at those who practice hate and intolerance, and take a stand against racial, social and even economic injustice whenever and wherever it occurs.
Whether it’s Bangor, Maine or the Darfur region of Sudan, America must stand for justice.
But we seem to spend more time in this country talking about building fences to keep people of color out than we do about making those who are here, legally, become a more accepted part of American life. This is a far more important issue: ending intolerance and making sure that everyone in this country, regardless of their race or their religion, has the same opportunity that the rest of us have. We should not tolerate the fact that there are people in this country living in the shadows, living in fear, facing prejudice and hatred day in and day out. This is America, the world’s melting pot, the land of opportunity. It shouldn’t happen here.
Dr. King still reminds us to this day what a life of social activism and service really means. His tireless struggle for civil rights serves as a model for all of us, but particularly for young people, whose time has come to carry on in Dr. King’s memory to guarantee equal rights for all.
We must be more proactive in addressing the racial disparities in our society. We must begin investing in the future by promoting programs—especially educational programs—that have long-term benefits for racial unity. We must reexamine our justice system and correct its disparities. And in the short-term, we must get Washington to commit to restoring New Orleans to its place among the great American cities, as quickly as possible.
And while we must always honor those who came before and brought us this far down the path to equality, we must never forget that the journey is ongoing, and there are many miles yet to go.
Although man’s moral pilgrimage may never reach a destination point on earth, his never-ceasing strivings may bring him ever closer to the city of righteousness.
-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. ("Strength to Love," 1963)
Ethan Strimling, Candidate for Congress, ME-01
P.S. - I'll be sticking around to respond to your comments until about 8:30E/5:30P.