Day Eighty-Nine: Musings on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.

Martin Luther Ling, Jr.

It has been 53 years since the passage of the 1957 Civil Rights Act. In contrast, it has been 10 years since all 50 states have recognized and celebrated Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. The time line of events is staggeringly short, yet inconceivably explosive. Dr. King is not the entire story of the Civil Rights Movement, but he is the indisputable leader; the man who galvanized millions for change in the face of unimaginable hatred and violence with the creed of only dignity and nonviolence. The reason we celebrate him on this day in January is to celebrate his courage, his conviction and his ideals. We celebrate our own American evolution toward the sacred goal of "liberty and justice for all."

Our evolution has been long, painful and continuous. In 1875, the first Civil Rights Act was passed guarantying voting rights for all men, regardless of race. This was overturned by an unenlightened U.S. Supreme Court in 1883. It took 74 years for another Civil Rights Act to pass Congress again. This sparked the beginning of the African American Civil Rights Movement. Despite the federal mandate written into law granting all men and women the right to vote, resistance was fierce and bloody. The flame was lit on December 1, 1955 when Rosa Parks refused to give her bus seat to a white passenger. People took to the streets, organized and demanded organic change for true equality.

November of 1963 brought the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. It is no coincidence that he and his brother, then U.S. Attorney Robert Kennedy, were strong supporters of civil rights. From 1957 to 1963 saw the rise in sit-ins, protests, lynchings, bus bombings and police brutality. The drive to register black voters in the south brought with it murders, violence and intimidation against all who sought change, black and white alike. By August of 1963, the fever of the movement culminated in the famous March On Washington where millions of people converged on the National Mall in a call for national civil rights. It was there that Martin Luther King, Jr. solidified his stature as the leader of the movement with his "I Have A Dream Speech."

This was no means the end, but a marked beginning for the struggle to come. 1965 saw the infamous "Bloody Sunday" when Alabama police brutally attacked thousands who marched on Selma. In 1966, the north proved no more sympathetic than the south in that thousands who participated in the March on Chicago were greeted with dogs, bottles and fists. The struggle seemed to implode with the assassination of Dr. King in Memphis on April 4, 1968. The Black Power movement took over and the call for nonviolence was virtually abandoned as hopeless. Those violently opposed to the nonviolent Civil Rights Movement saw their worst nightmares realized with the rise of Malcom X and the Black Panthers.

The federal legislative history of the Civil Rights Act parallels the rise of the movement itself. In 1965, a new Civil Rights Act was signed guarantying voting rights and federal prosecution for interference. This "Voting Rights Act" was in direct response to the overwhelming violence meted out to the Voter Registration volunteers in the south. In 1968, another Civil Rights Act was passed known at the "Fair Housing Act." This legislation was in response to Dr. King's war on poverty and his push to create a fair playing field for all beyond the voting booth. Some believe that it is Dr. King's move from purely political change to the his war on poverty that sealed his fate in April of that same year.

The Civil Rights Act saw new life in 1991. This version of the act guarantees all people the right to sue employers who discriminate on the basis of race. The link from voting rights to housing rights to employment rights took 74 years. Although President Kennedy is known for his vocal support of civil rights, it is President Johnson who took the lead and pushed for the passages of the the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 1965 and 1968. His legacy is marred with the disaster known as the Vietnam War, but he earned a rightful place set among the heroes of the Civil Rights Era.

Where are we today? We have an American President with half his heritage and skin tone from the African continent. Thousands of African Americans converged on Washington for President Obama's Inauguration in January 2009. The mixture of thousands and thousands of people, all races, ages and religions, walking the streets of Washington, D.C. in a unified spirit of American idealism and hope was an experience like no other. I was proud to bear witness to that historic occasion with all the background of the Civil Rights Movement in my mind's eye. It was proof of America's collective maturation. One more step towards the promise of true equality under the law.

There is much work left to be done. Political pundits use Obama's race as a weapon. We need to move to a time when race is just another descriptive attribute rather than defining factor. Poverty is still rampant in this county and millions of children of all races go to bed hungry each night. Dr. King's dream did not materialize with enacted federal legislation for civil rights. His dream was for all people in a nation of plenty to equally share in it's bounty. We are a far cry from the mountaintop, but progress is forever moving maddeningly, slowly forward.

I had the opportunity in 1999 to visit the city of Memphis for a legal conference. I fell in love with the city during my visit. The music, the food, the "vibe" was as foreign to me as if I went to Hong Kong or Cairo. The sounds and the tastes of the city are soulful and splendid. Although this taste of the south was a very different experience, there was something about Memphis that fed my soul, and I guarantee it was not Graceland. I spent a solitary afternoon going through the National Civil Rights Museum. The Lorraine Motel is located on the outskirts of downtown Memphis and this the location were Dr. King was gunned down. The hotel is frozen in time. There are vintage cars parked outside the balcony of his last hotel room. The balcony itself is sealed off in plexiglass and I viewed the pieces of cement that were torn out from bullets. There even remains dark stains on the balcony floor when Dr. King fell. The smallness of the room, the ordinariness of the hotel was in stark contrast to what massive event took place there. The exhibits throughout the museum were interesting, but nothing has moved me as much as viewing that balcony. I left the platform with tears in my eyes and a heaviness in my heart. Memphis saw the end of Dr. King's life but not his legacy. This is why I will always love Memphis.

The National Civil Rights Museum brought home to me the essence of what personal sacrifices were made in the name of a national ideal. The individual acts of courage; refusing to give up a bus seat, standing before snapping,snarling dogs, being spit upon, sprayed with needle sharp water, anticipation of bombs, gunshots or beatings all for the sake of the collective need for human dignity and worth. Many of my generation and the generation we have birthed cannot fathom that type of commitment, especially when instant gratification is not evident after all the struggle and sacrifice. I don't think that many people stop to think about what it felt like to be Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr., or Medgar Evers, to withstand the daily doses of personalized hatred and threat of violence. What must it have been like to be riding on a Freedom Bus worrying about being shot or blown up? How did it feel to sit at a lunch counter and have food dumped upon you, slurs screamed in your face and taking punches all while swallowing the urge to fight back? All this was endured and more without the help of the very people paid to protect us from personal harm. The police, the sheriffs, the varied members of law enforcement were fueling the very violence they swore to deter. I'd like to think I'd have joined the cause, but I honestly don't think I could have mustered the courage to be on the front lines. I honor the memory of all those nameless Americans who did this Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. We all should honor them as well and sincerely as we honor all fallen American Soldiers.

I have been spiritually connected to the legacy of Dr. King as long as I can remember. I have been fascinated with him and his courage of conviction as long as I can remember. I was born exactly 4 days after he was assassinated and always viewed that as a sign of sorts. My favorite Christmas gift was a recording of his "I Have A Dream Speech" when I was in Jr. high school from my mother. I feel he was on the path of something great, something beyond himself and his race. It may have been the African American Civil Rights Movement he championed, but all of us have benefited from the pains of his labor, and the thousands who followed him. The Women's Movement, the rights of children, immigrants and the impoverished have all flowed from these years of struggle and heartache. His essence of compassion for all of humanity has left him among my most favored and idealized historical figures. I know he was marred with personal failings. I am not interested in these. I am only interested in honoring all he stood for and all he represents.

To honor all those who fought, struggled, bled and died for Civil Rights, honor more than Dr. King's Day. It is not just another federal holiday, another day off from school and work. It is a time to reflect upon our past and honor the promise of our future. That promise is in the hands of every American.Visit www.mlkday.gov to see how you can volunteer your services in your community. The spirit of volunteering is the essence of who Dr. King was. To serve something besides your own self interest for the benefit of a greater community is the dream. Let the dream flourish.