{"id":1077,"date":"2017-01-16T10:24:55","date_gmt":"2017-01-16T14:24:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/?p=1077"},"modified":"2017-01-18T00:24:17","modified_gmt":"2017-01-18T04:24:17","slug":"a-time-to-pause-a-time-to-assess-martin-luther-king-jr-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/blog\/2017\/01\/16\/a-time-to-pause-a-time-to-assess-martin-luther-king-jr-day\/","title":{"rendered":"A Time To Pause; A Time to Assess: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Greetings and Salutations;<\/p>\n

Today is January 16, \u00a02017, \u00a0 a day that commemorates the life and actions of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. \u00a0As he was a man of Peace, \u00a0and contemplation, \u00a0I thought it right to take a moment, \u00a0sit back, \u00a0and remember his efforts and beliefs. \u00a0 To \u00a0ask myself “How can I apply his lessons about dealing with oppression, \u00a0racism and oppression \u00a0to the world today?” \u00a0 The past few months have, \u00a0alas, \u00a0been some of the most chaotic and unpleasant in the past \u00a0100 years of American History. \u00a0 In spite of the chaos and Evil of the two World Wars that this period covers, \u00a0which were bad enough, \u00a0This past year has seen more polarization and division between the Citizens since the Civil War, in the 1860s.<\/p>\n

John Lewis
Civil Right’s Activist
United States Senator<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s \u00a0was a pivotal moment in American History. \u00a0 Some of us are old enough to have lived through that time…and remember the changes it brought. \u00a0As with ALL huge changes in society, \u00a0it did not come without pain, \u00a0suffering and Sacrifice. \u00a0However, \u00a0throughout, \u00a0Dr. King preached that Peace was stronger than War. \u00a0That it was stronger than Violence. \u00a0 That Peace was stronger than than Hate, \u00a0and, that the only way, \u00a0we could progress as a society \u00a0was to embrace that Peace, \u00a0and use it as our strength and shield \u00a0to push through the attacks of Evil. \u00a0 What was the result of this view? \u00a0So many things that I cannot record them here, \u00a0today.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dr. King preached Non-Violence in all his efforts. \u00a0However, \u00a0violence came to him and others anyway. \u00a0 He, \u00a0John Lewis, \u00a0Bernie Sanders \u00a0and many other leaders and participants in the Civil Rights movement saw their peaceful \u00a0marches, \u00a0protests, \u00a0and publicity met with violence. \u00a0 After walking one more mile with tired, \u00a0hurting feet they were set upon by Law Enforcement officers armed with dogs and fire hoses; \u00a0 They were beaten and arrested time and time again; \u00a0In 1964, \u00a0three Civil Right’s Workers were murdered in Mississippi – \u00a0Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman, both white New Yorkers, had traveled to heavily segregated Mississippi in 1964 to help organize civil rights efforts on behalf of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). The third man, James Chaney, was a local African American man who had joined CORE in 1963;<\/p>\n

Bernie Sanders
Civil Right’s Organizer
United States Senator<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Dr. King was assassinated outside a Memphis Motel on April 4, 1968. \u00a0HOWEVER, after suffering physical abuse at the hands of those same Public Servants and pushing through it; \u00a0Society was changed. \u00a0 Peace had won a huge battle over Hatred. \u00a0I hope we all remember the Civil Rights Legislation that was put into the Legal Fabric of our society, \u00a0that banned the old practices \u00a0of segregation, \u00a0oppression, and abusive treatment of these Citizens, and what it cost to create it.<\/p>\n

These changes touched almost everyone in the country, \u00a0and in some cases, \u00a0bringing both positive and negative changes. \u00a0I, \u00a0for example, \u00a0had a moment of surprise that I recall today as clearly as the day it happened.<\/p>\n

When I was growing up, \u00a0we lived in what was a fairly rural suburb of Knoxville, \u00a0TN. \u00a0 There were few resources within walking distance, \u00a0and my mother did not drive. \u00a0So, \u00a0on a regular basis, \u00a0mother and I (and after a while, \u00a0my younger sister) \u00a0would walk to the end of the driveway, \u00a0 which was on a bus route, \u00a0and ride the bus into downtown Knoxville. \u00a0 There, \u00a0we would wander around doing shopping and such. \u00a0 There was a Woolworth’s on the main drag, \u00a0which, of course, \u00a0had that famous lunch counter, and on rare occasions, \u00a0I would get the treat of mother taking me to have Lunch at Woolworth’s.<\/p>\n

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While I do not recall the exact date – it was around 1964 – my mother, \u00a0I, and my baby sister went into town, and went into Woolworth’s for lunch. \u00a0 That day, \u00a0I saw something there I had never seen. \u00a0 At one end of the counter, \u00a0there was a Black family, \u00a0sitting at the Counter, \u00a0and waiting for service! \u00a0They had a number of empty seats between them and the White folks who were eating at the counter, \u00a0and NO one was acknowledging the other group. \u00a0It was not Lynching Tense, \u00a0but, \u00a0there was some tension there, \u00a0that even I, \u00a0at the age of 9 or so, picked up.<\/p>\n

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Now, \u00a0my parents were both well educated and had some experience with the world, \u00a0so they had reared us to look upon everyone as an equal… They might LOOK at bit different, \u00a0but, \u00a0inside, where it counted, \u00a0there was no difference between me and them. \u00a0 As a Lutheran, this was also a lesson re-enforced by the church. \u00a0 So, \u00a0we just hiked up to the bar, \u00a0got seats, \u00a0and ordered a bit of lunch. \u00a0 The only thing I really remember of the food was the chocolate Milkshake. \u00a0They had some of the best milkshakes in the area at that Lunch Counter, \u00a0so it was quite a treat to get to eat one (even if I DID have to share a few spoonfuls with my little sister!).<\/p>\n

Well, \u00a0the Black family had been sitting there for a while, \u00a0I think, when we came in, \u00a0and they \u00a0were ignored while our order was taken and cooked up. \u00a0However, \u00a0while our food was coming, \u00a0a waitress did take their order, and the staff was working on it when we left. \u00a0 I have to say that, even at that young age, \u00a0I thought it unfair that this family, \u00a0who was, \u00a0really, \u00a0no different from my family, \u00a0was being treated so poorly. \u00a0However, \u00a0the fact that seeing this happening in front of me also really affected my way of looking at the world. \u00a0 For me, \u00a0it was a good change. \u00a0It taught me that “equality of all citizens” was not just a collection of meaningless words, \u00a0but, \u00a0was an important part of our society.<\/p>\n

In Knoxville, \u00a0there were still places which had not bothered to take the “Coloreds Only”\/”Whites Only” signs down from near water fountains and public restrooms up into the early 1970s. \u00a0Of course by then, \u00a0no one paid a bit of attention to them…so they might have lost their power, \u00a0but, they remained a painful reminder of what used to be. \u00a0 I had hoped that they would be enough of a reminder that succeeding generations of parents would teach their children tolerance and Christian Love for all. \u00a0Alas, \u00a0as the past year or so has shown us, \u00a0Americans have not really embraced that evolutionary thought as much as we should have.<\/p>\n

Rev King \u00a0was a powerful voice for that change. \u00a0 His words were infused with the Power of Righteousness, \u00a0and moved many to take action. \u00a0To Stand Up and not condone, \u00a0or tolerate oppression and hate in our hearts or our society. \u00a0 \u00a0Today, alas, \u00a0America is terribly divided. \u00a0The last campaign brought more Evil into our world than was sane, \u00a0and while it worked well, \u00a0to get the donald elected to the Office of the President, \u00a0it was a short-sighted and foolish effort. \u00a0To me, \u00a0it was a case of dumping gasoline throughout a house, \u00a0then lighting a match while standing in the center of it because one wants to remodel it. \u00a0 This will guarantee that a fresh, \u00a0new, house will be built…but the question is…will the arsonist survive to see it? \u00a0The Question is…Was this the BEST or most efficient way to go about the changes? \u00a0 The problem I see with burning the house down is that there is often a lot of very good things that are in that house and a part of it. \u00a0 Those things are destroyed, \u00a0never to be replaced, by simple destruction. \u00a0 Dr. King never advocated the total destruction of society! \u00a0He advocated for CHANGE. \u00a0For Improvement. \u00a0For taking one bad aspect of our society at a time, \u00a0and finding how to remove and replace it with something good.<\/p>\n

As he said in his most famous address to the citizens, \u00a0<\/span>delivered 28 August 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C<\/span>…”I Have A Dream…”. \u00a0 Today, alas, \u00a0I fear that Dr King’s dream has been dimmed by greed, \u00a0political intrigue, \u00a0and hatred. \u00a0 It is up to each of us to take up the banner, \u00a0 Walk the Walk, \u00a0and not allow the advances that Dr. King, \u00a0John Lewis, \u00a0Bernie Sanders, \u00a0and many, many others won. \u00a0Some of these brave Citizens gave their blood to the cause…Some, like Dr. King, \u00a0gave their lives. Honor their sacrifices and walk the path of equality and self-knowledge that they progressed us on.<\/p>\n

Let me leave you with the words of one of the 100 best speeches ever given in America: \u00a0(Here is a LINK that includes the audio of this speech and some reference information<\/a>\u00a0that is of interest)<\/p>\n

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“I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Five score years ago, a great American<\/span><\/a>, in whose symbolic shadow west and today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation<\/span><\/a>. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames ofwithering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we’ve come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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In a sense we’ve come to our nation’s capital to cash a check.When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence<\/span><\/a>, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the “unalienable Rights” of “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, inso far as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked”insufficient funds.”<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so, we’ve come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro’s legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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We cannot walk alone.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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We cannot turn back.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights,”When will you be satisfied?” We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro’s basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating: “For Whites Only.”\u00a0We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until “justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream.”<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. And some of youhave come from areas where your quest — quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia,go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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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.”<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I have a dream<\/em> today!<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I have a dream that one day, d<\/em>o<\/em>wn in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of “interposition” and “nullification” — one day right there in Alabama little black boys and blackgirls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I have a dream<\/em> today!<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and everyhill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; “and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all fleshshall see it together.”<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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And this will be the day — this will be the day when all of God’s children will be able to sing with new meaning:<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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My country ’tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim’s pride, <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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From every mountainside, let freedom ring! <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies ofPennsylvania. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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But not only that:<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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From every mountainside, let freedom ring.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring,when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city,we will be able to speed up that day when all<\/em> of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Free at last! Free at last!<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Thank <\/i>God<\/em> Almighty, we are free at last!<\/span>“<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Greetings and Salutations; Today is January 16, \u00a02017, \u00a0 a day that commemorates the life and actions of Rev. Martin… Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[387,22,386,9,23,12,16,17],"tags":[575,631,90,632,630,628,629],"class_list":["post-1077","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-characters","category-ethics","category-general-thoughts","category-humanity","category-political-rants","category-politics-2","category-ruminations","category-snake-oil","tag-bernie-sanders","tag-citizens-responsibility","tag-civil-rights","tag-i-have-a-dream","tag-john-lewis","tag-martin-luther-king-jr","tag-racial-equality"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1077","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1077"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1077\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1097,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1077\/revisions\/1097"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1077"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1077"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beemandave.com\/beemanblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1077"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}