Comedian Jay Leno gets a lot of laughs out of showing young people pictures of historical figures and asking who they are. We'd laugh, too, if it didn't hurt so much. But it's not just the youth who are losing their "institutional memory." It's cultural. Say the names Hamilton and Burr today and most people think of George and Raymond.
That's why small commemorative events, such as the Mahatma Gandhi Birthday Celebration last Sunday at Salt Lake City's International Peace Gardens, are vital.
Gandhi, of course, led the drive for independance in India in the mid-20th century. He was an upper-class Indian who famously dressed like an "untouchable" to show his disdain for prejudice. His writings influenced Martin Luther King, Jr., Cesar Chavez, Nelson Mandela and hundreds of others who have sought social change outside of violent means. In the realm of American equality, Gandhi can be credited with many of the changes.
But rather than talking about the man, it is better to listen to him:
On personal discipline: "Always aim at complete harmony of thought, word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well ... You must be the change that you want to see in the world."
On errors: "Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes ... Honest disagreement is thus often a good sign of progress."
On violence: "I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary. The evil it does is permanent."
On humanity: "You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean. If a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty."
Gandhi died in 1948. Ironically — and yet not surprisingly — he was assassinated. We congratulate those who went to the effort of keeping his memory and ideals alive with a small, but important, celebration of his birthday. The effort might not change the world, but — as Gandhi himself once said: "What you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it."