Topic: Barack Obama
Betraying the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King
Would Dr. King, if he actually held public office, have voted for invading Iraq, invading Afghanistan, sending arms and money to Israel and remained silent as his poverty stricken brothers and sisters were slaughtered?
by Andrew Hughes
(libertarian)
Sunday, January 18, 2009

Martin Luther King Day in 2009 precedes the dawn of the historic inauguration of America's first African American President. This inauguration is hailed as the realization of Dr. King's dream, a defining moment in the cultural paradigm, a tectonic shift in race relations and a beacon of real change for the plight of the poor and oppressed. Infusing the dreams and ethos of Dr. King in to the presidential persona demands a confluence of ideals and actions to truly deserve the association. To betray the dream, to profit from the sacrifice is to insult the legacy. To be worthy of the torch demands integrity.

"Somehow this madness must cease. We must stop now. I speak as a child of God and brother to the suffering poor of Vietnam.I speak for those whose land is being laid waste, whose homes are being destroyed, whose culture is being subverted. I speak for the poor in America who are paying the double price of smashed hopes at home and death and corruption in Vietnam. I speak as a citizen of the world, for the world as it stands aghast at the path we have taken. I speak as an American to the leaders of my own nation. The great initiative in this war is ours. The initiative to stop it must be ours."

This speech by Dr.Martin Luther King in 1967 is as poignant today as it was back then. The names change but the nightmare remains the same. Today's Iraq and Afghanistan replace yesterday's Vietnam. Today's increased level of poverty and imprisonment of a hugely disproportionate number of African Americans in the prison system, the slaughter of millions more of the world's poor and Dr. King's subsequent murder at the hands of his own government bear witness to exactly which initiative was taken.

President-Elect Barack Obama, in his speeches, expresses his desire to inculcate the ideals of Dr. King in to his decision making and his attitude to his fellow human beings. He "chokes up" repeating the words of this Man of Peace, but he'll "hold it together" on Inauguration day. He'll make America, in Dr. King's words "a land no longer torn asunder with racial hatred and ethnic strife, a land that measured itself by how it treats the least of these, a land in which strength is defined not simply by the capacity to wage war but by the determination to forge peace - a land in which all of God's children might come together in a spirit of brotherhood."

He stands silent as his country aids in the genocide of the Palestinians. He will forge peace by sending 30,000 American troops to Afghanistan to intensify the massacre that has left nearly 6,500 of his civilian brothers and sisters dead (as of September, 2007). He stands silent on the more than 98,000 of his civilian brothers and sisters who have been murdered in Iraq. He threatens War against Iran, Syria and already destroyed Lebanon. He remains silent on the murder of his brother Oscar Grant III by police officer Johannes Mehserle in California. He perpetuates what Dr. King called "a nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift".

"Many of the ugly pages of American history have been obscured and forgotten....America owes a debt of justice which it has only begun to pay. If it loses the will to finish or slackens in its determination, history will recall its crimes and the country that would be great will lack the most indispensable element of greatness--justice" Dr. Martin Luther King, 1967.

The President-Elect refuses to bring George Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Henry Kissinger and the rest of the War criminals to justice as he looks forward from the mountain top and points the way to spiritual death.

Would Dr. King, if he held public office, have voted for invading Iraq, invading Afghanistan, sending arms and money to Israel and would he remain silent as his poverty stricken brothers and sisters were slaughtered?

The words of Martin Luther King have been hijacked by those would would use his message to further their own narcissistic goals. His peaceful supplication has been betrayed by lies and a sickening adulation of meaningless oratory. His greatest statements of love and humanity have been relegated to sound bites for mass consumption by a deceived public who have put their faith in a man who represents all that Dr. King was fighting peacefully against.

©2009 Andrew Hughes, all rights reserved. You must have written permission from the author in order to republish this work.
Published: Sunday, January 18, 2009
Last modified: Sunday, January 18, 2009

The views expressed in this article are those of Andrew Hughes only and do not represent the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates. Andrew Hughes is solely responsible for the contents of this article and is not an employee or otherwise affiliated with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.

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Reader Comments:

Posted By: LibertarianBlue
Date: 2009-01-18 10:40:20

Dr. King wouldve probably been against what we are currently doing around the world. The criticism thought would be identitical today as it was during Vietnam; communist, traitor, sympathizer, unamerican and so on.

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Posted By: Master C
Date: 2009-01-18 15:11:33

Andrew,

You seem to greatly misunderstand the differences between someone who runs for a political office and someone who is advocating an independent position.  MLK could NEVER have been elected to the US Presidency because of many of his extreme positions.  Anyone espousing an extreme position about war, poverty, crime, drugs, the economy ~ whatever ~ can NEVER be elected to a political office. 

That is the brilliance of our political system.  It is not ONE-WAY.  It is not TAKE IT or LEAVE IT.  It is a system of compromised positions.  Even Bush the Dictator found that he couldn't have it ALL his way. 

Barack Obama exemplifies and ameliorates many of MLK's positions and hopes.  Even his handling of the situations he's being forced to start with ~ Iraq, Afghanistan, financial strife, international animosity, etc. ~ are things that would make MLK proud of the DIRECTION Obama is taking.

He can't solve everything all at once.  He may not even be able to solve some of these issues the way he would like to.  That's a political reality that MLK never had to face.  But, Obama is slowly changing minds and actions in directions that will surpass the one-sided obstinance that you seem to think otherwise "betrays" the MLK legacy.

That's like saying that a TEACHER of math isn't as good at math as a MATHEMATICIAN.  That may be, but the MATHEMATICAN may also be a lousy TEACHER of mathematics.  There's both a difference in what they can do, and in what they can accomplish.

Master C

 

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Posted By: Jake, the champion of the constitution
Date: 2009-01-18 18:23:41

Dear Andrew -

Great stuff and timely.

Dear MC -

I suppose time will tell, and while I do not wholeheartedly agree with all of MLK's teachings, I very much look up to and respect his courage.  I hold MLK in the same high regard as I do Ron Paul and, go ahead and laugh, George Carlin :) when it comes to spreading liberty, although MLK may have reached many more people.

It is an insult to MLK to compare him with Obamaman at this point.  Feel free to do so after Obama does something of value.  With the power Obama now has over the pliant Congress, we are at his mercy, so his actions will speak louder than his words. 

 I just wrote a piece on Obama and his hypocrisy over Gaza and Mumbai, he is just being politically expedient like a good puppet.  [link edited for length]

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Posted By: gene
Date: 2009-01-18 19:39:56

Maybe I am wrong but last time I checked the guy wasn't even officially president yet. and maybe I am mistaken, but he is inheriting a country and a world as messed up as it has been since the start of the second world war thanks in a large part to the last administration and their unapologetic leader George. I believe the guy deserves a couple of weeks in office before total condemnation.

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Posted By: Master C
Date: 2009-01-19 00:35:11

Jake,

Your admiration of MLK has nothing to do with my comments to Andy.  The man can't see the differences in the accomplishments of the two.  Obama was able to achieve something that MLK NEVER could have ~ being elected President.  Obama has more political savvy than MLK could or did possess.

Andy thinks that if Obama doesn't follow an extreme position about the war, etc, that he's "betraying" MLK.  Wrong!  That's actually the ONLY way that he could have put himself INTO the position to do anything about it.  MLK could have marched and protested all he wanted to, but he would have NEVER been able to do anything about the war.  Obama can.

Andy ~ and apparently you, Jake ~ is just looking to criticize Obama in any way he can.  Sounds like jealousy and envy to me for a man that is presently SURPASSING the accomplishments of MLK already.  Obama will be more famous and more influential than MLK could have ever DREAMED of being just by being President.

Master C

 

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Posted By: Andrew Hughes
Date: 2009-01-19 02:42:36

Hi MC, Jake,

Dr. King could not have been elected President back in the 60's simply because they were the 60's. It would have been a quantum leap culturally that U.S. society was not ready for. Obama's accomplishment in winning the keys to the Whitehouse speak well of his talent for moving oratory that has been written for him already, but in the end, they are just words. The Monkey boy who'll be handing over these keys also had good speech writers and I can remember the zeitgeist in 2000 reflected the expectation of "change " also. The change was real but not for the better and just advanced the plans that were written way out of the public eye by the people who choose Presidents.I always think of Presidential elections as a relay race; every 4 years the baton is passed and more of the track is finished.

Dr. King's character was expressed through his words, actions and his commitment to his ideals. Barack Obama's character is expressed through his words, actions and ideals. Looking at what Obama has already said and done, I see no break from the continuity. His silence on the massacre in Gaza and his ACTIONS in voting for the handing over of taxpayer money to his campaign contributors only confirms this. 

After the election, I was waiting to see what he would do. He had already won the election so if he wanted to make a statement from his heart, why not just do it ? It wasn't like he would lose the Whitehouse. This, for me, along with his subsequent choice of old school corrupted players only confirmed it for me.

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Posted By: Master C
Date: 2009-01-19 09:53:14

Hey, Andy,

In case you weren't aware of it, the rest of us don't rely on people like you and Jake to support Obama or the system of government that we have.  We know you are recalcitrant rebels who will never be satisfied until you have things all your own way.  But, that day will never come, I'm sure.  So, be happy criticizing the rest of us from the sidelines where you will forever be.

Master C

 

 

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Posted By: Christine Smith
Date: 2009-01-20 09:15:07

"His peaceful supplication has been betrayed by lies and a sickening adulation of meaningless oratory. His greatest statements of love and humanity have been relegated to sound bites for mass consumption by a deceived public who have put their faith in a man who represents all that Dr. King was fighting peacefully against. "

What powerful sentences...what a powerful article!

It is beyond comprehension why so many Americans cast aside independent thought to join in this great illusion.  To equate Obama with MLK takes much mental acrobatics.  But illusions have one thing in common, when they become apparent, the disillusionment can be very painful.  This is what I think is in store for our nation.  Sad.

Thank you for having the courage to write such a powerful article.  It expresses well the truth. 

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