Every year I come to this turmoil and in 2018, I posted a piece titled This Land Does Not Deserve A King
What is not known to folks is that I started writing this piece five years before publishing it. I even begin this piece by saying,
'I struggle with this title for some time, but I am sure now that the title is correct. '
Each year, when January hits, I consistently think to myself, have we as a country indeed adopted the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.? For me personally, I really struggle with this. I work in academia; therefore, I find myself surrounded by ideologies that praise his legacy with reference only to "I have a Dream."
Each year Colleges and Universities across the country hold banquets and days of service while still holding onto legacies in which Dr. King protested.
Each year I have to listen to the politicians talk about how much Dr. King meant to this country while proposing legislation and adopting laws which King would despise.
Each year I listen to the so-call Christian, align themselves with violence and hate while repudiating any acceptance of love and peace.
And each year, I get to watch the wealthy become wealthier while showing an ill will to the poor, who indeed gets poorer.
I am no saint! I spent the last five years writing a book titled, Welcome to the sick mind of a sane person, in which I ask one of the toughest questions I can think of as a proud Black American. "How do I contribute to the legacy of the legendary institutions of white supremacy?" Read my book for more details. But, when I think about what Dr. Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King sacrificed for this country, it makes me sad.
Now in 2020, here we are again, and still, the evidence presented to me tells me that our land did not deserve a King. America still chooses inequity and hate while ridiculing those who accept peace and love. America still praises a king and impairs its prince while defiling its queen. And yes, American still neglect it's King's proclamations.
But for America, we cannot give up hope. We have to give to the next generation, what previous generations fail to provide to us. The truth! We cannot accept the portrait of goodness while knowing its canvas's intentions are evil. We cannot continue to live in a dream, but allow our consciousness to take fruition instead. Isn't fifty-six years a long time to be asleep? We must, as said by Dr. King, "be proud to be maladjusted" to inequities.
And if America has any hope, we should not stop "until justice rolls down like water and righteousness, like a mighty stream."
