Dr. King Weeps From His Grave

Gerald · 08-26-11, 04:32 PM

THE Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial was to be dedicated on the National Mall on Sunday — exactly 56 years after the murder of Emmett Till in Mississippi and 48 years after the historic March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. (Because of Hurricane Irene, the ceremony has been postponed.)

These events constitute major milestones in the turbulent history of race and democracy in America, and the undeniable success of the civil rights movement — culminating in the election of Barack Obama in 2008 — warrants our attention and elation. Yet the prophetic words of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel still haunt us: “The whole future of America depends on the impact and influence of Dr. King.”

Rabbi Heschel spoke those words during the last years of King’s life, when 72 percent of whites and 55 percent of blacks disapproved of King’s opposition to the Vietnam War and his efforts to eradicate poverty in America. King’s dream of a more democratic America had become, in his words, “a nightmare,” owing to the persistence of “racism, poverty, militarism and materialism.” He called America a “sick society.” On the Sunday after his assassination, in 1968, he was to have preached a sermon titled “Why America May Go to Hell.”

King did not think that America ought to go to hell, but rather that it might go to hell owing to its economic injustice, cultural decay and political paralysis. He was not an American Gibbon, chronicling the decline and fall of the American empire, but a courageous and visionary Christian blues man, fighting with style and love in the face of the four catastrophes he identified.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/26/op...me&ref=general

Note: August 25, 2011

AVGWarhawk · 08-26-11, 06:29 PM

I have read that MLK would probably be ashamed with his family for charging over a half a million to use some of his spoken words on the monument. Second, he would just be ashamed of the monument. It is something his demeanor did not exude.

It is a shame that we were not able to see what MLK could have done in America if he did not meet an untimely end.

Gerald · 08-26-11, 10:47 PM

True, the truth is preserved.

Anthony W. · 08-26-11, 11:13 PM

People (falsely) using MLK to make political statements... This is low...

Gerald · 08-26-11, 11:43 PM

08-26-11, 04:32 PM	#1
Gerald SUBSIM Newsman Join Date: May 2008 Location: Close to sea Posts: 24,254 Downloads: 553 Uploads: 0	Dr. King Weeps From His Grave THE Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial was to be dedicated on the National Mall on Sunday — exactly 56 years after the murder of Emmett Till in Mississippi and 48 years after the historic March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. (Because of Hurricane Irene, the ceremony has been postponed.) These events constitute major milestones in the turbulent history of race and democracy in America, and the undeniable success of the civil rights movement — culminating in the election of Barack Obama in 2008 — warrants our attention and elation. Yet the prophetic words of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel still haunt us: “The whole future of America depends on the impact and influence of Dr. King.” Rabbi Heschel spoke those words during the last years of King’s life, when 72 percent of whites and 55 percent of blacks disapproved of King’s opposition to the Vietnam War and his efforts to eradicate poverty in America. King’s dream of a more democratic America had become, in his words, “a nightmare,” owing to the persistence of “racism, poverty, militarism and materialism.” He called America a “sick society.” On the Sunday after his assassination, in 1968, he was to have preached a sermon titled “Why America May Go to Hell.” King did not think that America ought to go to hell, but rather that it might go to hell owing to its economic injustice, cultural decay and political paralysis. He was not an American Gibbon, chronicling the decline and fall of the American empire, but a courageous and visionary Christian blues man, fighting with style and love in the face of the four catastrophes he identified. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/26/op...me&ref=general Note: August 25, 2011 __________________ Nothing in life is to be feard,it is only to be understood. Marie Curie

08-26-11, 06:29 PM	#2
AVGWarhawk Lucky Jack Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: In a 1954 Buick. Posts: 28,286 Downloads: 90 Uploads: 0	I have read that MLK would probably be ashamed with his family for charging over a half a million to use some of his spoken words on the monument. Second, he would just be ashamed of the monument. It is something his demeanor did not exude. It is a shame that we were not able to see what MLK could have done in America if he did not meet an untimely end. __________________ “You're painfully alive in a drugged and dying culture.” ― Richard Yates, Revolutionary Road

08-26-11, 10:47 PM	#3
Gerald SUBSIM Newsman Join Date: May 2008 Location: Close to sea Posts: 24,254 Downloads: 553 Uploads: 0	True, the truth is preserved. __________________ Nothing in life is to be feard,it is only to be understood. Marie Curie

08-26-11, 11:13 PM	#4
Anthony W. Grey Wolf Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Central Indiana Posts: 850 Downloads: 130 Uploads: 0	People (falsely) using MLK to make political statements... This is low... __________________ Sunken Mustangs Proud Ford Mustang owner "Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!" - Admiral David Farragut Run silent - run deep - keep the baffles clear - targets front and center. Private pilot and history buff

08-26-11, 11:43 PM	#5
Gerald SUBSIM Newsman Join Date: May 2008 Location: Close to sea Posts: 24,254 Downloads: 553 Uploads: 0	1968 - Martin Luther King's Prophetic Last speech - Remember __________________ Nothing in life is to be feard,it is only to be understood. Marie Curie