The Place Where Ludington Talks
A Lesson from Martin Luther King for Modern America
Peaceful civil disobedience. MLK wasn't the first to try it, and he won't be the last. The original Boston Tea Party was just one such pre-Revolution act by early colonists to be followed by other peaceful actions throughout the USA's history leading to reforms.
Injustices by businesses, organizations, and our own government agencies may best be shown by using non-violent methods of showing the existing unfairness to one and all.
MLK was greatly influenced by the non-violent philosophy of Gandhi and Christians through the ages once saying:
"Was not Jesus an extremist for love — ‘Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, pray for them that despitefully use you.’ Was not Amos an extremist for justice — ‘Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.’ Was not Paul an extremist for the gospel of Jesus Christ — ‘I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.’ Was not Martin Luther an extremist — ‘Here I stand; I can do none other so help me God.’ Was not John Bunyan an extremist — ‘I will stay in jail to the end of my days before I make a butchery of my conscience.’ Was not Abraham Lincoln an extremist — ‘This nation cannot survive half slave and half free.’ Was not Thomas Jefferson an extremist — ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’ So the question is not whether we will be extremist but what kind of extremist will we be. Will we be extremists for hate or will we be extremists for love? Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice–or will we be extremists for the cause of justice?"
The video here teaches a lesson one rarely will find in today's classrooms with units on this great man. These will focus on the outcomes of the civil rights movement, a couple of events, and his "I have a dream" or "How long? Too long!" speeches. This falls short of the mark.
Those who go up against the proverbial Goliath nowadays (whether it be a giant corporation, a powerful governmental entity, or an entrenched idea) may have more luck with a flower and a smile than the sling. Tea Partiers take note: In the light of day, for all to see, unfairness and corrupted power look atrocious indeed. The major problem usually involves figuring the most effective way to present your ideals, but then MLK has also said: “Human salvation lies in the hands of the creatively maladjusted.”
(the lesson of the video is mostly audio, you may wish to open another window and surf during the ten minutes it runs)
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