Martin Luther King Jr. was a “leader, a father and a legend”

Laquavia Smith/ Contributing Writer

Martin Luther King Jr. is someone who as children growing up, we held much revere for. We were taught that he was a person who exemplified importance, with a vision and a dream. He was a leader, a father and a legend.

When I think about King I think about black power, justice, struggle and triumph but I also think about how much we have digressed as a nation. To me, MLK day is the beginning of Black History Month. It’s the whistle before the race, the cutting of the ribbon at a ceremony, the start of a journey.

As a child I remember attending the Martin Luther King Jr. parade faithfully every year and be enlightened by the spirit and energy of all the individuals in attendance. From blacks to hispanics, everyone standing in the crowd, with their different color shirts, Martin Luther King embroidered on the front.

At times you would even see King next to Bob Marley, everyone’s shirt their own.We all came together to show our gratitude and love for this man and this profound holiday. As I become older I realise just how prominent his vision was and still is.

King had a dream of not only equality and justice but peace. Peaceful protests, peaceful forms of communication. King was against any form of violence, chaotic uproar or mischief. He believed in equal rights and equal punishment, a voice for the people as well as a voice for authority.

Yet, 48 years after his assassination and we still see police brutality, killings, suicides and violent protests. 2015 was the year that such police killings surpassed any occurrence of police assault as well as lynching and capital punishment combined in the United States.

According to The Huffington Post,  there are more than 1,100 police killings each year — about one every eight hours. 88 percent of those killed by police are killed by gunshot. In 2016 alone, at least 258 blacks were killed by police. These are the statistics that worry me. As we quickly approach MLK Day it’s only human to think about the progress — or lack thereof —  we’ve made as civilians.

We have numerous deaths and practically no convictions. This day and age an authority figure being found guilty of killing a civilian is the equivalent of pigs flying. Not only have the amount of convictions gone down but when an African-American male is the victim we hardly see any form of justice.

If King was alive today I’m sure his heart would be full of sorrow, a man who gave his life for righteousness, in such disbelief of how the world still remains in the same condition he left it. Why is it that 48 years later, it’s as if we are still separated by race?

Are we united? Or are we not? Don’t get me wrong, yes we dine, laugh, learn and party together, however when we discuss the issue of life or death, there are so many deaths unjustified, unnoticed and at times unpublicized. These deaths are viewed as miniscule issues in a country who is supposed to be build on justice.

Have we lived up to the dream of King? Are we fulfilling his vision or are things as bad as they were in 1968. It’s so difficult to talk about MLK without simultaneously speaking on racial issues. As someone who lost one of their closest friends to an act of racial injustice, it’s indeed a touchy subject for myself.

Trayvon Martin, a Miami-Dade native and a friend of mine was shot and killed by George Zimmerman who was later found innocent. Zimmerman’s reasoning for killing my childhood friend was nothing more than that he “looked suspicious.”

I continue to wonder how a 17 year-old boy, minding his business, walking down the street with skittles in his hand, holding a conversation on his telephone, can at all look suspicious. How can one as sweet and loving as Martin even cause an ounce of terror in one’s body?

It’s the Martin’s, the Oscar Grant’s, the Tamir Rice’s and the Michael Brown’s of the world that are taken away from their loved ones and not once provided with justice.

Have we not instilled enough fear in the hearts of killers everywhere so that they don’t kill with the thought of knowing they will be found innocent because of both the color of their skin and of their victim’s.

Whether it’s everyday people like Zimmerman or police figures such as Daniel Pantaleo, who were both found innocent, there should not be a constant rotation of white men pleading innocent to the killings of black men and walking away to carry on with their lives.

King said “We can never be satisfied as long as the [Black man] is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.”

And yet, here we are; it’s the year 2017 and yes, black men, the black man and woman are still victims and justice has not been served. MLK Day reminds me that things have not changed, that I have lost a piece of my own heart to racial injustice and that the cycle continues.

Like myself, many people —  public figures and celebrities included — have decided to speak out on how they feel about such issues. San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, for example, put himself in the lime light when he kneeled down during the national anthem.

Kaepernick’s demonstration of peaceful protest caused a ton of backflash. His reasoning behind the iconic kneeling, according to The Huffington Post, as said by Kaepernick was “[I’m] not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” Twenty-two days after the protest, another 67 people were killed by police.

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” King said.

As I look around, injustice is like a five o’clock rain, continuous and disruptive. I hope 2017 brings less killings, more justice and an end to the racial issues in a country “known” for equality, freedom and power.

 

DISCLAIMER:

The opinions presented within this page do not represent the views of Panther Press Editorial Board. These views are separate from editorials and reflect individual perspectives of contributing writers and/or members of the University community.

Photo courtesy of Flickr.