MARTIN LUTHER KING Jr. AND HIS MEANING TODAY FOR OUR INTOLERANCE AND HATE

By

Harry C. Blaney III

We are living in a time that we see at home and abroad attacks on justice, human rights and a leader in our nation that espouses racism and hate. It is time thus to remember the words on his birth date pf Martin Luther King Jr.  He knew deeply the forces of evil and hate and the returned both with peaceful protest and understanding and love. It is sad that we have moved so much backward from not only his fight against bigotry but also his work  for the poor and neglected. We are seeing around the world but also now a determined effort to harm the “least among us” at home by Trump and his supporters, but also abroad with his acquiescence in acts of cruelty and violation of human rights and not least admiration of brutal dictators.  King would have understood that context and would voice his opposition but in the hope of redemption by moral force.

A personal note, Martin Luther King Jr was a beacon of hope and justice during my grad student days. I heard him at a Yale commencement and later in London heard his talk at St. Paul’s Cathedral on his way to pick up his Nobel prize. I joined earlier also at grad school in a “sit-in” effort in St. Augustine in Florida on Spring break sponsored and led by King’s Southern Christian Leadership Council (SCLC), landed in jail with many others including my wonderful Yale Chaplain William Sloane Coffen Jr.

I leave for my readers a quote from him on this the anniversary of his birth:

“ I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.”

“God is not interested merely in freeing black men and brown men and yellow men, but Gold is interested in freeing the whole human race.”

The other line in his draft “Letter from Birmingham Jail” which is with me to this very day was ”In justice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”

Let us not forget is goals and sacrifice.

 

MARTIN LUTHER KING Jr.: A GLOBAL LESSEN FOR OUR VITRIOLIC AND BIGOTED TIMES

MARTIN LUTHER KING Jr.: A GLOBAL LESSEN FOR OUR VITRIOLIC AND BIGOTED TIMES

“For evil to succeed, all it needs is for good men to do nothing.”

Martin Luther King Jr.

By

Harry C. Blaney III (A Personal Note)

There is a lessen to all of us who worry about the direction that humanity is moving and not less what direction America will go in the future. This day we honored a man that indeed did “make America graet” in the yes of all at home and abroad.  America has been the acknowledged leader of Western and other democracies but that is now threaten by the irresponsibility and venomous statements and threats made already by Donald Trump.

Not least on this day we honored an extraordinary man filled with a commitment to equal justice for all, the elimination of racial and economic exploitation and prejudice, and especially committed to democracy and peace. But Trump, with malice afore thought, once again spudded disparaging remarks to a person with a morality that Trump it seems will never understand. Lewis said he did not consider, what many others believe, that Trump is “a legitimate president” and he gave as the reason Russian operatives interfered in the election on Trump’s behalf. Given that and the action of the FBI, Trump won with a profusion of outright lies, and that Hillary Clinton won nearly 3 million more votes, seems to not be a very strange conclusion among a large segment of Americans.

Trump we all know in this context, is the man who disparaged Sen. McCain as a prisoner of war, a Gold Star family, a disabled reporter, and a host of just good people beyond numbers to count. So his nasty words directed at a good man with great courage who marched with MLKJr into dangers for the sake of justice and racial equality seems sadly no surprise.

I feel this insult and nasty disparagement especially strongly because, in the smallest possible way, I also participated in our civil rights era by going South on Spring break conducting sits-in with fellow students, my Chaplain, and above all bravely by local African-Americans all under the banner of the Southern Christian Leadership Council (SCLC) led by Rev. King. It was not much but I was beaten with cattle prods by the St. Johns County police trying to sit-in, held in jail with my fellow peaceful protestors and threaten with death by the head of the local KKK inside the jail, the leaders of which were in cohorts with the police. Much worse I add was mete out to the local Blacks over the years.

All the while Trump made sure to discriminate against African- Americans in his New York housing operations. Now we see the same mind set of hate for “the other” coming back and extending to just about any who dare to criticize him or have a different viewpoint.

More on this element when we examine soon Trump’s MLKJr day attacks on our allies and praise and irresponsible national security giveaways to our adversary Vladimir Putin, the brutal killer of innocent babies, woman, and men in Syria and military aggressor in Ukraine on which he offers to lift sanctions. All in a typical day for a unsound Donald Trump.

We welcome your comments!