On January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, a boy named Michael was born. He was named after his father. In 1934, after visiting Berlin and witnessing the horrific rise of Nazism, both father and son changed their names to Martin Luther. On April 13, 1944, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his first public speech. The high was overshadowed by the racism and injustice he faced afterward. The humiliation was seared into his memory. He was determined to hate every white person - every person who subjected him to such hate. But his father convinced him that this wasn't the path to follow. And that advice guided his life from then on. On August 28, 1963, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., Martin Luther King Jr. gave a 17-minute speech that would energize generations. The words he spoke still echo and inspire hope decades later... I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."
On October 14, 1964, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his nonviolent crusade against racial injustice. He was the youngest person ever to be given the honor. Then, on April 4, 1968, at 6:01 p.m., while exiting room 306 of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, he was gunned down by a man fueled by hate. A life - particularly one so tragically short - can so easily be boiled down to a few key moments. But no singular moment truly illustrates the profound impact a person can have on the world... an impact that each of us has the ability to have. I am older than Martin Luther King Jr. ever had the chance to become. But his greatness is immortal. His legacy is eternal. And the beacon of his life will still burn bright long after I've left this world. His dream - the dream he had for his children, the dream he had for America, for this world - is an everlasting flame guiding all of us. Martin Luther King Jr. believed each of us has unfathomable power to do good. We just have to choose to do so. "Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that," he preached. Today, we pause to celebrate his life and light. How a boy named Michael could rise above all the hate cast at him, strive to bring the entire country with him and become one of the greatest civil rights leaders in the world. Enjoy the day. And honor Martin Luther King Jr. by striving not to diminish others... but to raise them up. Sincerely, Matthew | 
No comments:
Post a Comment