It seems I look forward to Martin Luther King Day more every year. It never happens that I don’t learn something new, that I don’t encounter a new perspective, or even a number of them. It never happens that I don’t have a worthwhile conversation. That I don’t find new hope and commitment within myself. That I don’t have precious time to contemplate the life and ongoing contributions of the most remarkable man of my lifetime.
More below.
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In today’s reading, there was a fine WaPo article about Resurrection City and the Poor People’s March. He had been assassinated before he could travel there, but, reading the article, I could feel his presence and attendance in a very clear way.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/the-forgotten-dream-of-martin-luther-king-jr/2018/01/12/b76bf3f8-f6e2-11e7-a9e3-ab18ce41436a_story.html?utm_term=.e4b36689c8a0
The article that resonated the most with me, however, was a TeenVogue article with the thesis that Dr. King was more radical than we remember.
https://www.teenvogue.com/story/mlk-more-radical-than-we-remember
Written by Jenn Jackson, it focused on things like his opposition to the Viet Nam war, at a time when that was an unpopular position.
Gallup polls from the era, cited in the article, noted:
In 1965, Gallup found that King had a 45% positive and 45% negative rating. And, in 1966, that last year he was included in the poll, his positive rating dropped to 32% while his negative rating increased to 63%. However, by 2011, his rating was 94% positive. This vast swing in approval of King today isn’t rooted in his radical legacy. Rather, it is the product of generations of appropriation of his liberatory work and a whitening of his effort to ensure more freedom for those least likely to attain it in the United States.
Jackson includes a King quote from his final book;
Whites, it must frankly be said, are not putting in a similar mass effort to reeducate themselves out of their racial ignorance. It is an aspect of their sense of superiority that the white people of America believe they have so little to learn. The reality of substantial investment to assist Negroes into the twentieth century, adjusting to Negro neighbors and genuine school integration, is still a nightmare for all too many white Americans.
And … finally (my last excerpt):
He continues: “These are the deepest causes for contemporary abrasions between the races. Loose and easy language about equality, resonant resolutions about brotherhood fall pleasantly on the ear, but for the Negro there is a credibility gap he cannot overlook. He remembers that with each modest advance the white population promptly raises the argument that the Negro has come far enough. Each step forward accents an ever-present tendency to backlash.”
I cannot speak for anyone else, regarding the first quotation, but I feel no sense of superiority. I don’t believe that I have ‘little to learn.’ I have a lot to learn. This article was just one example, one opportunity. So many more await.
The final sentence quoted above … finds us in a time of one of the most vicious backlashes in recent times. It isn’t just him. And it isn’t just them (Republicans and conservatives). So much of it is in the work that lies ahead, and how well we do it. Within and without. Because if we don’t do the work within, we can’t do it out in our world.
Thank you, Dr. King. I feel his presence and his attendance in a clear way tonight, too. Most needed. Most welcome.
On to tonight’s comments!
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From The Janitor:
I am submitting this comment by Fletch17C, because it perfectly captures that Donald "I am not a racist" Trump is indeed a racist, using his own words. And he’s lazy and ignorant, too.
Highlighted by keithl:
Is this comment by 4CasandChlo about one of Dolores O’Riordan’s fine songs with the Cranberries. RIP, Dolores. That cast a bit of a pall on the day.
Top Mojo ala mik!
For Sunday, January 14, 2018, first comments and tip jars excluded. Thank you mik for the mojo magic! For those of you interested in How Top Mojo Works, please see his diary on the subject.
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