Many are giving recognition and thanks to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. thismonth for the rights and freedoms he fought for, and that we enjoy today.
I was 18 when King was murdered by an assassin's bullet. It took years for me to fully understand what King died for. Many under the age of 50 still do not understand what King gave us and why he was killed, so I will outline it here:
As long as King focused on the African American community, and as long as hetalked in terms of race, then he might be a problem to the Administration anda thorn in the side of then President Johnson, to a limited degree. Be he really didn't pose a radical challenge to the system of power with that focus.But when King took up the question after the passage and ratification of the1965 Voting Rights Act, of America's involvement in the War in Vietnam and how billions of dollars was being spent abroad that we needed for domestic reconstruction at home, he was a problem. He took up the issue of poor people's rights, the need not just to have a right to vote, but a human right to a job, that homelessness should be abolished, and everyone should have clean affordable shelter. That education should be free to all, not just to public schools, but university education. That we do something about the great inequalities of wealth and power and privilege, which are structurally stratified within the society. When King began to talk this way, that's when he posed a threat to the system.When King talked about doing "The Poor People's March" which brought together not just blacks, but hispanics, poor whites and other ethnicgroups, he became dangerous to the status quo. We're talking about a distribution of the wealth of this country. The freedoms, privileges and rights the disenfranchised enjoy today are due to the efforts and sacrifices of this great, great man. We should never forget that.History repeats itself.The reason King and this historical video are so important is to see howthe events of 2008 mirror 1968 - 40 years later. The situation today issimilar, but in many ways worse: The Iraq and Afghanistan Wars, threatsof an Iran War, WWIII, the collapse of the U.S. economy, fewer jobs, peoplelosing homes across the nation in droves, inflation/recession (at the sametime), and a quickly approaching depression. The difference is that people affected today are not just minorities, but the entire middle class of allraces. This is a battle in the U.S. between the rich and the poor.Barack Obama has been compared to Dr. King. While there are manysimilarities, they are clearly different. We know of King's contributions;Obama has yet to prove his. Dr. King opened the door and cut the path;Obama is now walking in that path. He cannot walk it alone and needsall the help he can get. At first, watching this black and white video is a blast to a past world many will not relate to. As you get into the video, the similarities of the strugglesKing and the people fought for are shockingly similar to today. Please take some time and watch this important video. It will help tounderstand what life was like in the 60's for minorities, inequality, theViet Nam War and other issues King fought against. It will help tounderstand what we are up against today.This video is about YOU, me and America. YES WE CAN!MarionEvents That Lead to the Assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.http://www.teachpeace.com/assassinationofmlk.htm_________________________________________
A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people. Martin Luther King, Jr.
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