More than 50 years after his death, the words and tributes to Martin Luther King Jr. might seem redundant. They are not. The meaning of King’s life and message ring true today, as profound and universal as ever.
Following King’s assassination on April 4, 1968, an editorial in The Washington Post read: “To each generation of mankind is given one or two rare spirits, touched by some divinity, who see visions and dream dreams. Committed to something outside themselves and beyond the orbit of ordinary lives, they serve their fellow-men as the movers and leaders of social change. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was one of these, a man whose extraordinary gifts were committed to humanity. Perhaps his tragic death was the means requisite to make real the purpose of his life.”
That purpose has expanded in succeeding decades as this nation has moved, in fits and starts, toward King’s vision of justice and equality for all. Many of his words remain well known today, even beyond his lauded “I Have a Dream” speech. As one of the most charismatic and eloquent orators in recorded history, King remains among the most quoted of Americans:
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’ “
That final quote is pertinent today as the nation recognizes the holiday set aside in King’s honor. MLK Day has become regarded as a day of service — a day on, not a day off. In Clark County, there are numerous opportunities to become involved and contribute to your community today.
Of course, King’s legacy would be muted if we did not extend that desire for service to all days of the year and not just the third Monday in January. Service to others was a hallmark of King’s life as he worked to make civil rights a reality in the United States. During his landmark speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1963, King said: “I refuse to accept the idea that man is mere flotsam and jetsam in the river of life which surrounds him. I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality.”
At a time when bigots in America are acting emboldened, King’s call for all people of good conscious to speak up and speak out and defend the notion that we all are God’s creatures is particularly relevant. Notably, King was a warrior in one of the United States’ most consequential battles while steadfastly clinging to a philosophy of nonviolence. In an era when civil rights activists were subject to beatings and specious arrests, King forthrightly believed that truth and love would eventually triumph.
That is a belief that resonates today, and shall resonate for all times. It is a belief that is essential if humans are to live peaceably and harmoniously in what constitutes a civilized society. “Man dies,” King said in 1965, “when he refuses to stand up for that which is right. A man dies when he refuses to take a stand for that which is true. So we are going to stand up right here … letting the world know we are determined to be free.”
It is a message that never will become redundant.
