Hindsight is 2020 when it comes to Dr. King's legacy
/By Erin Jones
People love to celebrate Dr. King today in 2020.
"How long? Not long, because 'no lie can live forever." "How long? Not long, because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."
- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Many particularly like to quote segments of the “I Have a Dream” speech — especially the bits about MLK wanting his four little children to be judged by the content of their character. And especially the following sentiment: “I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.”
These are all lovely.
However, if one were to just read the opening statements for the “I Have a Dream” speech, or look at many of the other (450-plus) speeches he delivered, one would realize why he was actually disliked and even hated by many in the ‘60s.
Starting in 1965, King began to express doubts about the United States' role in the Vietnam War. In an April 4, 1967, appearance at the New York City Riverside Church — exactly one year before his death — King delivered Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence.
Check out, for instance, the speech King delivered at the Alabama state capitol building after the march from Selma to Montgomery: “Our God is Marching On.” Or the speech, at the time his most controversial, that he gave in 1967 at Riverside Church in New York: "A Time to Break the Silence."
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr was not a small, gentle man with intent to placate anyone.
Love is not always “nice.” Sometimes love requires us to be honest when others don’t want to hear the truth. As parents, our love for our children demands that we both hug them and discipline them. As citizens, our love can be displayed both by the flying of a flag and by calling our nation to account when she misses the mark or fails to meet the needs of her citizens.
On this day devoted to his life and legacy, let us not sanitize Dr. King’s memory or pretend that what he was asking of those in leadership was to “just be colorblind.” Failing to acknowledge the damage done by policy and practice (nationally and regionally) in the past, or the ways systems continue to oppress and marginalize is not going to move our nation to become the US we can be.
Erin Jones is a nationally recognized educator and a former candidate for public office who now leads her own consulting company, focusing on equity, culturally-responsive practice and delivering motivational speeches.
