Reflections From a Murky Pond

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream in which his four little children would one day live in a nation where they would not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. But that was back in 1963 when Blacks – with some White allies – were putting their very  lives, and the lives of their families, on the line in struggle for Civil Rights and equality in America.

That was then, this is now

See more at lol celebs!

Well all dreams die when we wake up to reality. The nightmarish truth is that MLK’s children grew up in a world where they wouldn’t be be judged by the color of their skin but by the image of their culture that is portrayed by the media. That image is most often based on the worst available individual examples of any cultural group in America – as exemplified by the rapper and ghetto thug,  Lil Wayne, who is depicted in the image above.

Related Reading:

I believe that just about everyone in America knows of MLK’s “I Have A Dream” speech – even if very few in America actually know much of the text of that famous address of August 28, 1963. Few though remember a later and much more controversial speech by Dr. King though.

On April 8, 1967 – a year to the day before his assassination – Rev. Martin Luther King gave this speech, entitled Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence, at the Riverside Church in New York.

MLK: Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence

I believe that Aaron McGruder is one of those few who knows of this speech. In episode 9, The Return Of The King, of his animated series Boondocks McGruder shows a alive and well Rev. King protesting the US’ response to 911 and being branded a “Hate American Traitor” by the media for doing so. This is almost exactly what really happened in ’67.

If you would like to read the full text of King’s Beyond Vietnam – A Time to Break Silence, it’s posted after the break.

Read the rest of this entry »

Related Reading:

What would have happened if Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. hadn’t died four decades ago? How would MLK Jr. have responded to our modern America?

Aaron McGruder’s animated series, The Boondocks, presents a possible series of events that might have come to pass if Dr. King had only been in a coma after the shooting, instead of dead.

Boondocks Episode 9 – Return of the King

McGruder, with his usual “no one gets out alive” style of social sarcasm, shows Dr. King’s “dream” awakening into a modern “nightmare.”

Related Reading: