His Photo' Will be in Most American Newspapers Today. But Not this One

 


18th January 2021.  In the U.S.A. "The Revd. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day"

Today Dr. King will be lionised in the mainstream media.  He will be hailed as a prophet; a tireless worker for Civil Rights; a brave and courageous leader.  The High Priest of non-violent civil disobedience and protest.

Many reporters and commentators will not get beyond the section of a long speech by Dr. King; commonly known as the "I have a dream speech"  as if he never said or wrote anything else.  I call it the "safe Dr. King Speech"  - safe that is for those who wish to tame the legacy of this great man.

He was never safe.  He called the whole American enterprise into judgement.

For that he was mocked, derided, hated, beaten, imprisoned. There was a violent hatred for Dr. King and the movement he helped to lead; in the North and in the South. For that he was assassinated.

I write this lest on this day we all get dewy eyed about the great Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.;  but ignore his masterful and necessary critique of  the ways of our nation for the rest of the year.

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