Are we Honoring Martin Luther King Jr’s Dream?

Monday, January 21, 2013 we celebrate the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. His life, words and deeds have inspired many and opened the doors for the continuing march for civil rights.  He was a pastor, activist and vibrant philosopher speaking and writing on man and the human spirit. His words still burn with truth today.

“Let us not wallow in the valley of despair. I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.  I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."
Martin Luther King Jr’s Dream Speech - 1963

In this country we turn a weary page towards a new year burdened with a sluggish economy, a divided populous (if one looks at the past November election) and a storm brewing over second amendment rights. Across America and the world there is a steady echo of gun violence from bedrooms, to backyards and school rooms to board rooms. A continuing stream of blood runs into the street.

“That body there… is human kind.
Not bricks and mortar pushed to ground.
Not leaves of grass left to cut.
Not mud pooling waiting to dry.
But human – man, woman…… child.”
From Stones, poem by D. L. Campbell

And yet there is hope. There are those that are waking up to the illusions that have plagued us. We have overcome many struggles to work towards maintaining our place in the world. The key is to recognize that we are all in the same game.

“We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
From Martin Luther King Jr’s letter from a Birmingham jail in 1963

It is perhaps fitting that President Obama is being sworn in at his public inauguration on this holiday commemorating King. Obama’s election and re-election is a testament to the words, deeds and actions that King and many others have laid upon the floor of our humanity. King’s legacy speaks to our minds and souls and asks us to listen with our hearts. This here planet is our boat around that blazing sun and if we sink it, we are indeed in trouble.

The Lessons of the Dream

Love and Brotherhood
Time and time again Martin Luther King Jr. spoke to us of loving one another as brothers and sisters. He taught from the scriptures that love was the conquering force that dowsed the flames of prejudice and calmed the anger of hatred.

Today we see the flickers of intolerance, hatred and bullying rearing its head. We must ask ourselves will we hit send to spread an insensitive email or will we begin to put love on the negative voices whispering amongst us?

Compassion
When we consider that what happens to others is connected to each of us it can allow us to recognize that there are small men but no lesser men. When we open our hearts we bring healing to the whole of us.

Peace
Foremost in King’s teachings was peace. He knew that war, anger, hate, prejudice all stemmed from fear. Fear comes when we do not have a peaceful mind. The key then would be to create from early years to our last years a peaceful environment in our minds and souls. This will in turn extend out from our minds in to our homes and then into the streets, schools, and work places.

This will take time but King said in his Nobel Prize acceptance speech in 1964, “I still believe that we shall overcome!”