The Morality of Martin Luther King
We have waited for more than 340 years for our constitutional and God-given rights. […] but we still creep at horse-and-buggy pace toward gaining a cup of coffee at a lunch counter. Perhaps it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging dart of segregation to say, "Wait." But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim; when you have seen hate-filled policemen curse, kick and even kill your black brothers and sisters; when you see the vast majority of your twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society; when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six-year-old daughter why she can’t go to the public amusement park that has just been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children, and see ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in her little mental sky, and see her beginning to distort her personality by developing an unconscious bitterness toward white people; when you have to concoct an answer for a five-year-old son who is asking: "Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?"; when you take a cross-county drive and find it necessary to sleep night after night in the uncomfortable corners of your automobile because no motel will accept you; when you are humiliated day in and day out by nagging signs reading "white" and "colored"; when your first name becomes "nigger," your middle name becomes "boy" (however old you are) and your last name becomes "John," and your wife and mother are never given the respected title "Mrs."; when you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance, never quite knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of "nobodiness" — then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait. There comes a time when the cup of endurance runs over, and men are no longer willing to be plunged into the abyss of despair. I hope, sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience.
You express a great deal of anxiety over our willingness to break laws. […] One may well ask: "How can you advocate breaking some laws and obeying others?" The answer lies in the fact that there are two types of laws: just and unjust. I would be the first to advocate obeying just laws. One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that "an unjust law is no law at all"
[…]
We should never forget that everything Adolf Hitler did in Germany was "legal" and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was "illegal." It was "illegal" to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitler’s Germany. Even so, I am sure that, had I lived in Germany at the time, I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers. If today I lived in a Communist country where certain principles dear to the Christian faith are suppressed, I would openly advocate disobeying that country’s anti religious laws.
I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro’s great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen’s Councilor or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action"; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man’s freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a "more convenient season." Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection.
[…]
I have heard numerous southern religious leaders admonish their worshipers to comply with a desegregation decision because it is the law, but I have longed to hear white ministers declare: "Follow this decree because integration is morally right and because the Negro is your brother." In the midst of blatant injustices inflicted upon the Negro, I have watched white churchmen stand on the sideline and mouth pious irrelevancies and sanctimonious trivialities. In the midst of a mighty struggle to rid our nation of racial and economic injustice, I have heard many ministers say: "Those are social issues, with which the gospel has no real concern." And I have watched many churches commit themselves to a completely other worldly religion which makes a strange, un-Biblical distinction between body and soul, between the sacred and the secular.
I have traveled the length and breadth of Alabama, Mississippi and all the other southern states. On sweltering summer days and crisp autumn mornings I have looked at the South’s beautiful churches with their lofty spires pointing heavenward. I have beheld the impressive outlines of her massive religious-education buildings. Over and over I have found myself asking: "What kind of people worship here? Who is their God? Where were their voices when the lips of Governor Barnett dripped with words of interposition and nullification? Where were they when Governor Walleye gave a clarion call for defiance and hatred? Where were their voices of support when bruised and weary Negro men and women decided to rise from the dark dungeons of complacency to the bright hills of creative protest?"
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Before closing I feel impelled to mention one other point in your statement that has troubled me profoundly. You warmly commended the Birmingham police force for keeping "order" and "preventing violence." I doubt that you would have so warmly commended the police force if you had seen its dogs sinking their teeth into unarmed, nonviolent Negroes. I doubt that you would so quickly commend the policemen if you were to observe their ugly and inhumane treatment of Negroes here in the city jail; if you were to watch them push and curse old Negro women and young Negro girls; if you were to see them slap and kick old Negro men and young boys; if you were to observe them, as they did on two occasions, refuse to give us food because we wanted to sing our grace together. I cannot join you in your praise of the Birmingham police department.
Letter from Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963.
Amongst the loads and loads and tons and tons of nonsense you’re going to hear or see today, the foregoing is something to help you remember what institutions Martin Luther King was fighting, and why.
Today, many of his "followers" and their sycophants jockey for just the sorts of of institutionally-imposed racism that King was willing to sit in a jail cell to undo. I’m not so cynical as to believe that the black power elite, a-la Jackson, Sharpton, and others, actually seek to maintain the sorts of "unintended consequences" that can be plainly seen during any drive through a large inner-city in America (if you dare) — any more than MLK believed that the white moderates and Christians of whom he wrote, above, wanted the oppression of blacks to continue.
They just weren’t concerned enough to be willing for such profound societal changes to cost them much of anything — money, time, status. To take a real, principled stand, in those day, was costly. A few looked beyond, to realize that the cost to their soul for doing nothing was far greater. Today, the black elite enrich themselves with money, influence, and fame through the race-issue advocacy industry that has grown up in this country, and they aren’t about to give it up — in spite of its clear and present consequences.
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Extraordinary power made simple. Simple truth made extraordinarily powerful. Really something worth keeping alive.
I love his characterization of those who believe victims should patiently and passively await justice: they live "by a mythical concept of time."
What a great tribute, Rich. Glad I read it, even if a day late.
Frank Bi:
You can "bollocks" all you like, but it will never change the fact that any sort of government-enforced policy to either deny or award something based upon an individual's race is a race-based policy, i.e., racism.
Frankly, my point isn't so much about affirmative action, which appears to be the primary thrust of your outburst. That's on the wane, good riddance, and by opposing affirmative action I in no way seek to detract one bit from the real tortures blacks endured in this country. See the first paragraph of the MLK quote. That was real, and it was shameful, indeed evil on the part of anyone who contributed to it.
No, my primary focus goes beyond the policy issue here and there. The black culture is in serious, serious trouble, and I don't see any of the black-elite demagoguery helping in the slightest. Quite the opposite, in fact.
Oh, by the way. My second job as a Navy officer was as first lieutenant on a cruiser. Essentially, that's the person in charge of all deck operations and maintenance of all exterior spaces and equipment. I had 65 guys, most of them inner-city blacks. By my own experience, I know that what these wonderful kids need is some basic respect and, most importantly, to be subject to high expectations. They don't need to be handed a damn thing, nor told that they need to be handed a damn thing.
This is a refreshing post. After reading that some ridiculous percentage of college students think that MLK was fighting against slavery, I only hope that his true message will be transmitted again.
Oh my, the "institutionally-imposed racism" which our poor Nikoley is experiencing! When he tried to find a job, black bosses constantly threw him out. When he tried to found his own company, black people mob-lynched him. Whenever he travelled, he couldn't find lodging because the motels were black-only.What a load of bollocks.
there is no revolution without bloodshed. i can't remember who said this (malcolm x? che?) but i think it's true: clearly, there is no leader nowadays — black, white or otherwise — who is willing to die for a cause that they believe in.
if it's one thing this country could use right about now, it's a revolution — a cultural one, perhaps. i don't know.
perhaps the revolution will be televised. if all of this flat-out ignorance and confusion keeps growing on both sides, it'll have to be.
So, Nikoley, you admit that whites have brutally tortured blacks in the past, yet you'll oppose any and all efforts to balance this wrong with a government programme? By your twisted logic, if a thief steals something from you, is it "institutionally-imposed robbery" for the government to demand that the thief return it to you?And how exactly has this "affirmative action" hindered you in your ventures? Were you denied jobs? Were you mob-lynched? Were you denied housing? If not, then your screams of "Racism! Racism!" aren't directed against any real oppression; they're just a thinly veiled excuse to sling mud.
"So, Nikoley, you admit that whites have brutally tortured blacks in the past…"
I see you continue to engage in disrespect in addressing me, your host, here. That "uniquely" frames your argument, wouldn't you say?
Moving along, let's first clean up what could be sloppy thinking, purposeful manipulation, or simply innocent manner of speaking that leads to false implications and premises.
Here's what it really amounts to:
I acknowledge the plain fact that some whites, in the past, and until even the present have (and still do) brutally torture, defraud, fold, spindle, mutilate, and even kill some blacks. And also: other whites, some browns, reds, and yellows.
See, since I've personally never had anything to do with any of that, from either side, there's nothing to "admit," which would lead to the implication that I personally share some guilt or culpability. Moreover, other whites, reds, browns and yellows are equally innocent of such evil.
By the way? I also acknowledge the plain fact that some blacks in the past, and until even the present have (and still do) brutally torture, defraud, fold, spindle, mutilate, and even kill some other blacks; and also some whites, browns, reds, and yellows.
And so…
"yet you'll oppose any and all efforts to balance this wrong with a government programme?"
What do you mean by "balance?" To whose benefit, by what claim, and at whose expense? If I am to assume, for example, that you're white, what sort of program do you have in mind to benefit yourself because some other whites have suffered brutal injustice at the hand of still others (white, black, brown, red, or yellow)?
I'm not against efforts to counter the stigma of slavery, and indeed, I will acknowledge that such stigma is real and can be devastating. But it seems counter-productive, to me, and it has been my real personal experience, with real blacks from real lousy childhoods, that there's just no way in the world around sucking it up and moving on. It's the bottom line, it's essential. It matters not how much you hand them or withhold. In the end, they've got to get up off their butts and go about it under their own flag and sense of responsibility to themselves. All this other stuff just serves to cloud that essential element.
Neither am I slinging any mud. Indeed, my concern and sorrow is real. The fact that there are so many black people I admire, respect, look up to, am inspired by, etc., makes me really sorrowful that more aren't seizing that same chance at life; and I note that there are a lot of black political and activist elite who seem to be benefiting and profiting from the status quo.
Setting aside everything but the practical, can't you acknowledge that the billions spent since the 50s and 60s here in America has not made much of any improvement, and indeed, has arguably made things worse for most? The many who have made good lives for themselves would have done so anyway, as was happening long before desegregation, the civil rights act, and affirmative action came along.
…And allow me to add one other thing.
You know, if the great "balancing" programs of which you allude had been terrific successes, I'd be more than happy to suck it up, shut up, and move along. I may not acknowledge that assigning guilt to the innocent in order to right a wrong in which they had no part was the proper way to go about things, but had it at least been effective, I could take consolation in that and be satisfied with the outcome.
But that's not what we're seeing, at least insofar as I can perceive.
The fact is that blacks, here in America, by and large, are not looked upon as "full-fledged members of society" (giving an ample dose of leeway as to just what that means). So why is that?
I think it's because, right or wrong, far too many are perceived as more focussed on hand-outs, effortless opportunity, and outcomes that are divorced from sound exploitation of opportunity than are focussed on creating a great life for themselves in spite of whatever lousy hand they may have been dealt.
Does it mean that no amount of billions can buy them the respect of their social peers? I think that's exactly what it means, and I'll add that I think that that's a good thing.
I think the formula is rather simple. Nobody can buy or give an individual self respect. It must be earned on one's own terms, and if it is properly earned, the respect of peers soon follows.
I see no way around it. I understand that doesn't seem "compassionate" from the perspective of many. I'm not quite sure why that is, and frankly, I'm not terribly interested in discovering why.
Nikoley:
I don't see what's so "disrespectful" about actually writing out an argument, putting down a name to make it clear whom I'm replying to. And I thought this is someone who's against authority. But this is your blog after all, so feel free to ban.
To whose benefit? As MLKJ put it:
"…for two centuries the Negro was enslaved and robbed of any wages—potential accrued wealth which would have been the legacy of his descendants."
Indeed. These "other" people you talk of are the descendants of slaves who should have inherited those benefits in the first place.
And, you refuse (perhaps rightly) to take any responsibility for crimes committed against blacks, yet you'll vehemently cry foul against supposed "racist" "oppressions" who don't even begin to affect you or anyone you know of. Is it so strange now, that this doesn't seem "compassionate"?
Mr. Bi:
Out of respect, I have not been referring to you as simply "Bi" in my responses, and not even "Frank," for that matter. But have it as you will.
I most certainly am not against authority. That would be quite foolish. However, I don't recognize false authority, i.e., the sort of authority asserted at gunpoint rather than the sort of authority that's earned and is compelling as wisdom. Reality, incidentally, is the final arbiter and authority.
Yep, I'm sure there are people walking around who'd have inherited vast tracks of land and wealth had it not been for slavery. But why limit that to just the black? In point of fact, every color has, at one point or another in history, been enslaved. So how are you going to sort it all out?
Essentially, what you are saying is that (and let's disregard color, here) but for a variety of events in the way past — innocent mistakes, accidents, tragedies, crimes — some people end up inheriting wealth they otherwise would not have, and others don't inherit wealth they otherwise would have.
Well, to start with, neither of my four grandparents inherited a dime. They were all dirt poor, and in the case of a couple of them, it cost my parents when they died because there was insufficient assets even to bury them. I'm sure there are a lot of white people who just haven't seen all that wealth stolen from the blacks make its way to them.
But, given the sum total of theft and other gross injustice committed against people over the eons, of which slave-holding of blacks in America is a small part, we'd expect to see all kinds of evidence of this stolen wealth, right? After all, isn't that how things are produced? They're not created. They're stolen from indigenous peoples — those of true and pure wisdom. Yep, when I see a skyline of skyscrapers, the first thing I think of is had it not been for the scourge of Western Civilization, that would have all been created by the African.
Alternatively, one may consider entering the world of the real, today, and recognize that only the very recent past can be "rectified," if at all, and that's just life and move on. learn from the mistakes, of course, and if there is evil from the past that can be objectively rectified, i.e., without doing whole new evil, then have at it. But that's very unlikely.
Oh, I know the whole focus of the thing, of course. They're going after capital. And, it's true: that's the only place the wealth stolen from blacks was preserved. It was preserved and built upon.
Of course, it's not a moral argument, but blacks in America today fare far better economically than their brethren in Africa where they have controlled their own wealth and capital in many places for a significant period of time.
But it's the smart way to go after this "reparations" thing, I suppose. After all, in America, it's popular to pin the evil on "big business" and make them pay. People don't tend to understand how their own fortunes are inexorably linked to the value of large enterprises here.
I may be wrong, but I believe this whole affirmative action and reparations thing is finally coming to be seen for the fraud that it really is — especially in the case of the latter.
Reparations are nothing more than a massive class action of blacks against everyone else, where, if successful, they would end up with relative pocket change, the black elite would make billions, and everyone else will have been dealt their spanking for the sins of their great great great grandfathers.
It's a fraud, Mr. Bi.