Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, and across the nation, people are celebrating his life and protesting the current state of affairs in the U.S. As they do so, many are talking about King’s best quotes. Besides his famous “I have a dream” speech, King gave rousing speeches that included inspiring and powerful quotes. In looking at some of them, it is clear to see they reveal how far we still have to go when it comes to not only race relations, but also many factors that influence daily life in America.
Martin Luther King talked a lot about the power of love. One of his most famous quotes is “love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend.” This is true, but unfortunately, the vision King had for a future full of love and unity has not come true. It seems Americans are more divided than ever, especially among political and religious lines. We definitely have a long way to go when it comes to showing love for those who disagree with us.
King once said “a genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus” and “there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right.” In this area, unfortunately, things have gone horribly awry. Our leaders are more fake, phony, dishonest and consensus-seeking than ever. In short, there are no genuine leaders anymore; just career politicians who search for consensus and then claim that is what they, too, believe. Just look at all the flip-flopping of today’s political candidates-switching parties, acting as hypocrites and outright lying are the things that characterize today’s leaders.
The third quote that reveals how far we have to go as a nation is “Every man of humane convictions must decide on the protest that best suits his convictions, but we must all protest.” Sadly, today’s young people are so lazy that the way they protest is by sending out tweets and ranting on Facebook. While there have been recent protests over the Michael Brown and Eric Garner killings, those are not close to the organized scope and scale of a protest such as Martin Luther King’s march on Washington, for example. In fact, Saturday Night Live just did a skit this past weekend regarding the laziness of today’s kids when it comes to protesting (watch the video below.) It is funny, but also sadly true.
The last Martin Luther King quote that perfectly illustrates how far we have to go is, “Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.” Now, perhaps more than at any other time in history, we are sliding toward the movie Idiocracy. With young people especially, the level of ignorance and stupidity is at an all-time high. We continue to slip in world educational ranking, and young adults know less now than ever before. College freshmen who need remediation exist in greater numbers than ever, too. This is all mostly thanks to digital media, and nothing is being done to stop it.
Martin Luther King spoke the truth on so many things, and his most famous quotes remind us just how far we have to go. Racism is only one of the factors that needs vast improvement. We must also improve in terms of leadership, education and interpersonal relationships.
