 John Fraser Hart wrote in 1967 in his book "The Southeastern Untied States,
"The attitude of most Southerners, when they contemplated the future of
their region, was compounded with hope and fear. Their hope was for rapid
industrial development that would change the retarded rural South to modern
cities. Their fear was the necessity of accepting the practice of racial
equality. These hopes and fears were both interrelated, for cities are
centers of change, and the growth of cities would bring increased pressures
for integration."
So on August 28, 1963 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. stood in front of the
Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC to deliver his "I Have a Dream" speech
where he said the promises that had been given a hundred years before had
been broken. He said, "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."
As Dr. King stood amidst that giant crowd in Washington, DC that day, his
mind may have gone back to the leaders of the Church who had pierced his
efforts with criticism and cries to "wait." He continued his speech, "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.' We 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.'" (This quote from the
Bible; Amos 5:24, American Standard Version)
Our remembrance of Dr. King rings in our ears and echoes in our minds each
time we remember the man and his work. With all the struggles he faced as he
worked tirelessly for all Americans who wanted to be free, his legacy
remains forever embedded in our collective memory as we rehearse the
monumental work he did for all humanity.
Now comes another incident in a long line of incidents regarding the
tensions of race in America. From the mark of the great legacy left for us
by Martin Luther King Jr. until now we have seen many advances in relations
between ethnic groups in America. Currently in the three Branches of
Government we see the representative ethnic mix that would have been
impossible in America's earlier history. Yet, as we follow the current news
story regarding the incident in Ferguson, Missouri we are witnessing all the
earmarks of the conditions that existed when the Civil Rights Movement was
in full force.
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The media has made the story a national event. The President has
spoken about the incident passing judgment about the police perhaps
having overreacted. Al Sharpton inserted himself into the incident
comparing it to the case of Trayvon Martin and was also critical of
the police action toward the ensuing looting and riots that followed
the shooting of Michael Brown by a Ferguson police officer.
The Governor of Missouri, Jay Nixon, took charge of the violent
clashes between the police and the protesters by putting the State
Highway Patrol Captain Ron Johnson in charge of the security
operations. With Captain Johnson's leadership in taking a "different
approach" embraced the protesters and sometimes even marched along
with them. Al Sharpton gave credit to the changed atmosphere in the
community under the leadership of Captain Johnson, but added, "There
are many more hurdles in the coming days." The Civil Rights leader
continued on with, “We haven’t even had the funeral. What happens
when these kids see their friend laying in the casket? I’ve been
through this more than one time. We’re not out of the emotions
because we all of a sudden had a good night of marching.” Al
Sharpton complained about the "militarization" of the police force.
Sometimes it seems when these things happen we have a difficult time
in harkening back to the words and works of Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. but charge right into the fray with media and politicians
blazing. Even when a tragedy like the shooting happens the media
rushes in to begin almost 24-hour coverage making charges and
counter charges, the Civil Rights people come out and inflame the
situation by making remarks of a racial nature, all without having
the least notion of the actual facts. Long before any facts are
collected in a unified, systematic investigation the media and
others are ready to find someone guilty even before the information
is released to the public.
When that happens it seems to give those whose minds are set toward
misadventure the motivation to go ahead with their protests and
rioting. Even when something like that happens, it still does not
provide justification for rioting and looting in stores that had no
connection with the incident. When that happens it surely is not
appropriate for a prominent Civil Rights leader to immediately begin
to criticize the operations to restore peace. Perhaps calmer, more
thoughtful leaders would be more help in those situations.
Dr. Ben Carson has been attributed as saying, "We need to understand
that we are not each others' enemies in this country."
"And it is only the political class that derives its POWER by
creating friction."
"It is only the media that derives its IMPORTANCE by creating
friction...that uses every little thing to create this CHASM between
people."
"This is not who we are." ----Dr. Ben Carson
Dr. Carson's words of wisdom put politicians and divisive media to
shame. Wouldn't our world and country be much better off if more of
our public leaders had a mind and thought process focusing more on
the inclusiveness reflected in Dr. Carson's wise words, rather than
the hate-filled divisiveness of the race-baiter? Only then will our
country fully heal the wounds of racial division and bring back the
message of leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
[By JIM KILLEBREW]
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