I think it is appropriate that as we honor the work and life of Dr. King, we might ask ourselves if we are part of the problem or the solution. I would suggest that it is long past time to start really trying to put Dr. King’s vision into effect, where people will be judged on the content of their character, rather than the color of their skin. If that is not a priority, then I think it shows how selectively we read Dr. King’s work.

I do see a lot of encouraging progress in the realm of political and economic power for blacks, as they now hold some of the most prestigious positions in the country. This past election gave us the second black governor, a black majority whip, and some minority committee chairs. King would have been pleased with that.

A most pertinent quote. Thank you.

As Dr. King looks at today’s world from beyond the grave, I am sure he would have mixed feeling (most of them negative) about one group of believers who have found their voice: The white, right-wing fundamentalist Christians who have been fighting the culture wars with the approval — and sometimes the active support — of the White House.

There was a time when the church was very powerful in the time when the early Christians rejoiced at being deemed worthy to suffer for what they believed. In those days the church was not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was a thermostat that transformed the mores of society. Whenever the early Christians entered a town, the people in power became disturbed and immediately sought to convict the Christians for being “disturbers of the peace” and “outside agitators”‘ But the Christians pressed on, in the conviction that they were “a colony of heaven,” called to obey God rather than man. Small in number, they were big in commitment. They were too God intoxicated to be “astronomically intimidated.” By their effort and example they brought an end to such ancient evils as infanticide. and gladiatorial contests.

Things are different now. So often the contemporary church is a weak, ineffectual voice with an uncertain sound. So often it is an archdefender of the status quo. Par from being disturbed by the presence of the church, the power structure of the average community is consoled by the church’s silent and often even vocal sanction of things as they are.

But those students who were so happy that the “nigger” had been murdered and all those who agreed with them who were of their age, a little older or a little younger are mostly still with us. How much have they changed? My family is from the South. The last time I visited there I was deeply ashamed of the attitudes I heard being taken for granted. It’s part of the reason I consider the “New South” that they brag about to be nothing but a shallow cover for the endemic racism of the region. That having been said the rest of our country is far from blameless. Research the history of the Klan. See how powerful they were for a long time in most of the country. That kind of deep bigotry doesn’t go away easily even in a couple of generations. There is still a great deal to be done.

Now I live in the City of Cincinnati and can still see the scars of the 60s riots. A synagogue building was destroyed by the rioters and the Jewish community moved further northeast. I can drive up and down Reading Road and see history.

Yup. That is why I put a link in my post to excerpts from Dr. King’s great antiwar speech.

I did not mention in my essay that many communities have public service days on MLK Day, and if you don’t have school or a job obligation, getting involved in a local program is a terrific way to honor Dr. King’s memory.

Thank you Shaun… Very nice.