Prior to and during the week of April 4, 2018, people all over the world recognized/memorialized the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968, Civil rights leader, theologian, and educator). People – young and old, Black, Caucasian, Native American, Latino, Asian, Christian, Jewish, Moslem, Buddhist, Hindu, agnostic, et al – were united in their praise and appreciation of the late Dr. King’s dedication and efforts to create a country that treated all people fairly.
“He was for equality, For all people you and me, Full of love and good will, Hate was not his way.” (The King of Love Is Dead by Gene Taylor, 1952-, musician)
Dr. King did not try to divide the U.S.A. (world) racially and looked forward to a world in which the color of people’s skin would not matter.
“…I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character…” (March on Washington Speech, Aug. 28, 1963)
“After all, there is but one race – humanity.” (‘The Bending of the Bough’ by George Augustus Moore, 1852-1933, Irish, novelist, poet, art critic)
Unfortunately, there are those who did/do not embrace Dr. King’s dream of a color-blind/conscious society “with liberty and justice for all.” Evanston is no exception.
Several Evanston alderpersons (Black and White) have attacked Caucasians for speaking out against current or threatened marginalization of Black Evanstonians because the speakers were/are not black. My mother would probably say that these alderpersons “make the late Dr. King turn over in his grave.” Certainly not an Age of Enlightenment. “Human beings are the only creatures who are able to behave irrationally in the name of reason.” (Ashley Montagu, 1905-1999, British, anthropologist)
I want to remind these “divided-we-fall,” race-conscious alderpersons that people of various races/colors/religions participated in the Civil Rights movements and that some of the participants of various races/colors/religions – James Chaney (black), Andrew Goodman (Jewish Caucasian) and Michael Schwerner (Jewish Caucasian) to name a few – were murdered.
“Judge not according to the appearance…” (Bible, John 7:24)
“United we stand. Divided we fall.” ( attributed to Aesop, 620-564 BC, Greek storyteller)