MLKDay 2019
HAPPY MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY!!
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| This quote reminds me of the sweet song In Our Small Way by Michael Jackson :) |
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| "I may be poor, but I am somebody. I may be young, but I am somebody. I may be small, but I am somebody. I may make a mistake, but I am somebody. I am black, brown, white I speak a different language, but I must be respected, protected, never rejected. I am somebody." |
I've been reading a small biography on the life of Martin Luther King Jr. and have been absolutely inspired by this incredible man! He endured terrible persecution and injustice as he fought for the most basic rights of human decency. This time period in American history has always been fascinating to me. I remember watching the movie Ruby Bridges as a very young girl and feeling horrified by the way people treated a child. I couldn't comprehend the fact that grown men and women were screaming at, threatening and actually trying to hurt this little girl simply due to the color of her skin. It made no sense to me and made me feel so sad. I did a report years ago in school on Harriet Tubman and was so inspired by her relentless courage and willingness to put herself in danger time and time again to help others gain the freedom they deserved and never should have had to live without in the first place. Since that time, Harriet Tubman has been a hero of mine. Whenever I read or hear about the very blatant disrespect and persecution towards any group of people, it has always pulled at my heart; i.e. the awful enslavement of the African Americans and the continued discrimination they faced even after the Emancipation Proclamation declared them free citizens, the Jews and other minorities in Germany during Adolf Hitler's awful reign of terror, the way immigrants were treated when they sought a better life in America and other various groups of people who have been discriminated against due to their race, religion, sexual orientation or ethnicity.
As I have read about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the way he courageously stood up for what he believed in time and time again, in the face of constant hate, danger and injustice, I was continuously reminded of another person I love, respect and admire for their fight against injustice: the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints first Latter-Day prophet, Joseph Smith. There have been multiple times I have thought about the prophet Joseph as I read about Reverend King and his experiences. They both endured severe hate and persecution without doing anything to anyone (one, simply due to the color of his skin and the other simply because he spoke his truth and refused to deny it). They were both unjustly imprisoned multiple times. They both wrote some of their most powerful and heart-felt feelings while being imprisoned. They were leaders who were both admired and despised. They both had an incredible work ethic that unfortantley gave them little time and opportunity to spend with their families. They are both martyrs for their cause and were faithful, valiant, peaceful men of God. I love Martin Luther King Jr's continued belief that the best way to create change was through non-violence. How hard that must have been to continue to march in peaceful protest, even when police officers, who are supposed to protect you, attack and abuse you. When you are attacked in brutal, awful, life-threatening ways. When people stand by and cheer as you and others are hurt.
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| Letter from Birmingham Jail |
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| Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail |
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| "Was not Jesus an extremist for love: "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." So the question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be. Will we be extremists for hate or for love? Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice or for the extension of justice?" "I had also hoped that the white moderate would reject the myth concerning time in relation to the struggle for freedom .... time itself is neutral; it can be used either destructively or constructively. More and more I feel that the people of ill will have used time much more effectively than have the people of good will. We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people. Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co-workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. We must use time creatively, in the knowledge that the time is always ripe to do right. Now is the time to make real the promise of democracy and transform our pending national elegy into a creative psalm of brotherhood. Now is the time to lift our national policy from the quicksand of racial injustice to the solid rock of human dignity."  And although their influence shall cast thee into trouble, and into bars and walls .... if thou art called to pass through tribulation .... if thou art accused with all manner of false accusations .... and if thou shouldest be cast into the pit or into the hands of murderers and the sentence of death passed upon thee .... if fierce winds become thine enemy .... know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good. The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he? (D&C 122:4-8)
When I think about heroes like Joseph Smith, Martin Luther King Jr. and Harriet Tubman, just to name a few, I can't help but feel deep and profound respect and humble adoration and appreciation for all they endured. There are hundreds of others like them: anyone who has stood up in the face of injustice and were mocked, beaten, imprisoned or killed are heroes. It's people like that who change the world. Could I do that? Would I be willing to risk everything, even my own life, for something I knew to be right? Even when others tell me it's wrong? I hope I could.
Today's song is a powerful cry for justice and fair treatment for all people. It's intense and emotional, delivering a message: enough is enough! Treat people with respect! Treat human beings, who are all the same; regardless of skin color, shape, size, age and whatever else it is that makes us "different" we are all children of God who all want only one thing: love. Kindness. Human decency. And this song came from someone who tried to show that to all people everywhere, even when people didn't always do that for him:
Song: They Don't Care About Us
Artist: Michael Jackson
Skin head, dead head
Everybody gone bad
Situation, aggravation
Everybody allegation
In the suite, on the news
Everybody dog food
Bang bang, shot dead
Everybody's gone mad
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
Beat me, hate me
You can never break me
Will me, thrill me
You can never kill me
--- me, sue me
Everybody do me
Kick me, ---- me
Don't you black or white me
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
Tell me what has become of my life
I have a wife and two children who love me
I am the victim of police brutality, no
I'm tired of being the victim of hate
You're raping me of my pride
Oh, for God's sake
I look to heaven to fulfill its prophecy...
Set me free
Skin head, dead head
Everybody gone bad
Trepidation, speculation
Everybody allegation
In the suite, on the news
Everybody dog food
Black man, blackmail
Throw the brother in jail
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
Tell me what has become of my rights
Am I invisible because you ignore me?
Your proclamation promised me free liberty, no
I'm tired of being the victim of shame
They're throwing me in a class with a bad name
I can't believe this is the land from which I came
You know I really do hate to say it
The government don't wanna see
But if Roosevelt was living
He wouldn't let this be, no, no
Skin head, dead head
Everybody gone bad
Situation, speculation
Everybody litigation
Beat me, bash me
You can never trash me
Hit me, kick me
You can never get me
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
Some things in life they just don't wanna see
But if Martin Luther was living
He wouldn't let this be, no, no
Skin head, dead head
Everybody's gone bad
Situation, segregation
Everybody allegation
In the suite, on the news
Everybody dog food
Kick me, --- me
Don't you wrong or right me
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about
All I wanna say is that
They don't really care about us
And I have one more. This song still delivers a powerful message but it's on a little lighter, happier and more hopeful note:) We are all apart of history. We are making our own personal histories every day, but we are also a part of our world, country, family, community, nations history. What will you do to ensure that the history you help create spreads goodness and light into the world? How do we help future Martin Luther King Jrs. rise up and change things for the better?
Song: History
Artist: Michael Jackson
He got kicked in the back
He say that he needed that
He hot willed in the face
Keep daring to motivate
He say one day you will see
His place in world history
He dares to be recognized
The fires deep in his eyes
How many victims must there be
Slaughtered in vain across the land
And how many struggles must there be
Before we choose to live the prophet's plan
Everybody sing...
Every day create your history
Every path you take you're leaving your legacy
Every soldier dies in his glory
Every legend tells of conquest and liberty
Don't let no one get you down
Keep movin' on higher ground
Keep flying until
You are the king of the hill
No force of nature can break
Your will to self motivate
She say this face that you see
Is destined for history
How many people have to cry
The song of pain and grief across the land
And how many children have to die
Before we stand to lend a healing hand
Everybody sing...
Every day create your history
Every path you take you're leaving your legacy
Every soldier dies in his glory
Every legend tells of conquest and liberty
Every day create your history
Every page you turn you're writing your legacy
Every hero dreams of chivalry
Every child should sing together in harmony
All nations sing
Let's harmonize all around the world
How many victims must there be
Slaughtered in vain across the land
And how many children must we see
Before we learn to live as brothers
And leave one family oh...
Every day create your history
Every path you take you're leaving your legacy
Every soldier dies in his glory
Every legend tells of conquest and liberty
Every day create your history
Every page you turn you're writing your legacy
Every hero dreams of chivalry
Every child should sing together in harmony
A soldier dies
A mother cries
The promised child shines in a baby's eyes
All nations sing
Let's harmonize all around the world
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