Dr. Bernice King, Martin Luther King III: Why We Must Make Our Father’s ‘Dream’ a Reality
Are We Too Late?
by Dr. Bernice King
Are we too late?
This is the difficult, devastating question that I have recently been considering; not morbidly, pessimistically, or apathetically but sincerely and carefully. With a heart full of love and a yearning for a better humanity, I have contemplated the current condition of our World House, particularly in light of words my father, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., wrote fifty-three years ago.
In a chapter titled ‘World House’ within his last book, Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community? published in his lifetime, he stated, “We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late.”
There is such a thing as being too late. Are we too late?
If we embrace the fierce urgency of now, we are not too late. If we face our past with honesty and integrity, we are not too late. If we learn how to work together to change unjust systems and policies, we are not too late. If we get to the root of inhumanity and pull it up with love, courage, and strategy, we are not too late. But we cannot wait.
As our World House reels from the trauma of climate change and little collective attention to systemic change; from racism and the continuum of its effects, which encompasses mass incarceration, voter suppression, housing discrimination, and social justice issues centered on law enforcement interaction with Black people; from all other oppressive, inhumane ‘isms’ in America and abroad; from earthquakes in Puerto Rico and fires raging in Australia; from the militarization of police; from floods in the Central African Republic and a hunger crisis in Yemen; from a gun violence epidemic in the United States and an environmental injustice calamity that grossly impacts communities already grappling with poverty; and from wealth disparity and the absence of a guaranteed annual income—it is abundantly clear that we cannot wait.
With the fierce urgency of now, we must build the will and the coalitions to create a more peaceful, just, and humane world. Both my father and mother, Coretta Scott King, believed that this new world, “The Beloved Community,” was possible. I, too, believe. We are not too late, but this is a critical hour. Let’s engage civically, spiritually and globally to change the trajectory of our World House.
Tomorrow is today.
###
Martin Luther King III: Q & A
By Susan Pascal
On January 20th, the nation honors the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., but King’s son, Martin Luther King III says there’s still much to be done before his father’s “dream” is ever to be realized. Nearly 52 years after King’s assassination, King III says the current divided political climate has frozen progress on any meaningful social, economic or political reform.
We spoke with King III about his own hopes and dreams for equality and a more united nation.
1. As the nation celebrates your father this Monday, how do you hope we remember his work and legacy?
If I had to boil it down to just three critical things, I would say educate, serve, and vote. Educate yourself and then your family, friends, and community about my father’s work and teachings, particularly his philosophy and strategy of nonviolence. You can read his six books, anthologies of his speeches and historical accounts of his leadership of the Civil Rights Movement.
Next research King holiday community service projects in your area. There will be thousands of them all across America and millions of Americans will be taking part in them. There will be blood donor drives; feed the hungry breakfasts, lunches, and dinners; gun collection projects; rehabilitation of shelters for the homeless and victims of domestic violence; clean up projects of neighborhood creeks and rivers; personal care for senior citizens in facilities for the elderly, to name just a very few of the voluntary activities all across the nation. Then join one and serve the people in your community.
Lastly, make sure you are registered to vote. Educate yourself and others about the issues and the candidates, share what you have learned, and do what you can to encourage your family members, friends, and neighbors to do the same. My father once said, “We must make politics a crusade.” In 2020, more than ever, we must meet this challenge with wholehearted commitment.
2. Why do you believe we need his message and inspiration in our country now more than ever?
Our country is bitterly split today, and we urgently need to build new bridges of trust, cooperation, and goodwill towards our fellow citizens across the chasms that divide us. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s teachings about nonviolence and building multi-racial coalitions provide a way to do this, without getting bogged down in acrimony and despair.
3. Has his “dream” been fulfilled?
No. There is still way too much poverty, racism, and violence in America and around the world. We have made some significant progress in many areas. But we have also experienced some setbacks, such as the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, which we must now strive to restore to full strength as we mark the 55th anniversary of this historic legislation and the 150th anniversary of the ratification of the 15th amendment, which extended the franchise to all races.
This year we are also commemorating the 100th anniversary of enacting the right to vote for women in our country. Part of our challenge this year is to elect many more women candidates toward fulfilling the goal of gender equity in America’s federal, state, and local legislatures.
My father’s dream will be fulfilled on the day that we eradicate poverty, racism and violence. This is the great work that we must do, so that coming generations will be able to live together in peace, with justice and prosperity for all.
4. At a recent speaking engagement, you said, “We as a country can do better when responding to current events.” What did you mean by that?
For one thing, political polarization has frozen all progress on needed social, economic, and political reforms. For example, I’ve seen estimates that over 400 pieces of legislation passed by the House of Representatives have died in Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s office. Surely we can do better than allowing one U.S. senator to kill legislation supported by huge majorities of voters.
Then there is the climate crisis, which many of those in power deny is a serious problem. We may not have much time left to address this crisis. We need to get some more leaders in Congress and the White House who have the good sense and courage to take action before it’s too late.
5. How can we move the country forward with regards to race and gender equality?
It is absolutely critical that we mobilize energetic voter registration, education, and turnout movements in communities across the nation this year. We simply must have better leadership in the White House and the Senate in order to secure the legislative changes we need to move America forward. We need to elect more candidates of color so that our federal, state, and local legislatures look more like the communities they serve. That most emphatically includes electing more women. Political parity for women in congress is a critical goal for helping America live up to its potential. Our democracy can’t function properly, for example, when only 26 of 100 members of the Senate and 101 of 435 members of the House are women. Until we correct this imbalance, our politics will be distorted.
In addition to politics, we have also got to press corporate America to do a better job of promoting women and people of color to policy-making positions. We need more people of color and women in the executive suites and corporate boardrooms of the nation. The same goes for better-paying skilled jobs.
Lastly, we have to do a better job of reaching out to people of a different race, culture or gender to build multi-cultural coalitions for needed change. Divided, our impact will always be limited. But together, we can begin to build the Beloved Community of my father’s dream.
This piece was featured in the January 19th edition of The Sunday Paper. The Sunday Paper inspires hearts and minds to rise above the noise. To get The Sunday Paper delivered to your inbox each Sunday morning for free, click here to subscribe.
