The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. is rightly recognized and remembered for his “I Have a Dream” speech, delivered at the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington on Aug. 28, 1963. Without texting devices, the internet or social-media platforms, more than 250,000 people gathered in protest for jobs, justice and freedom.
While the speech and the unprecedented gathering were undeniably historic, it was King’s leadership that influenced a national transformation in America. There are a few lessons we can learn from his life and leadership today.
Although he was a prophetic and inspirational leader, King was not always welcomed and embraced by others, including his own people — specifically clergy. The criticism and rejection by his fellow clergy was documented in his letter from the Birmingham jail.
Even in the face of incessant criticism, King took a patient posture to inform and inspire those who did not believe in his philosophy, approach and actions against injustice. One lesson from his posture is that responding with defensiveness and matched anger and accusations does not necessarily invite engagement, collaboration and partnerships.
In his Birmingham jail letter, King gave examples of situations where he was disappointed in the clergy’s abandonment. He also conveyed that he wept over the laxity of the church, which was often passive, silent or collusive in the face of rampant injustice.
When his hope that clergy would stand with him faded, King said that he experienced “shattered dreams.” A lesson from this expression is that the work of advocacy and activism is hard, heavy, gritty and emotional. There may be times when it makes perfect sense for certain people to stand with you, but instead they abandon you. This can feel like a gut punch. However, we have to prepare ourselves for such a possibility.
Near the end of his “Drum Major Instinct” speech, delivered on Feb. 4, 1968 at Ebenezer Baptist Church just a few months before his assassination, King seemed to foreshadow his death and eulogy. He shared the following:
“If any of you are around when I have to meet my day, I don’t want a long funeral. And if you get somebody to deliver the eulogy, tell him not to talk too long. Every now and then I wonder what I want him to say. Tell him not to mention that I have a Nobel Peace Prize — that isn’t important. Tell him not to mention that I have 300 or 400 other awards — that’s not important. Tell him not to mention where I went to school.
“I’d like somebody to mention that day that Martin Luther King Jr. tried to give his life serving others. I’d like for somebody to say that day that Martin Luther King Jr. tried to love somebody. I want you to say that day that I tried to be right on the war question. I want you to be able to say that day that I did try to feed the hungry. I want you to be able to say that day that I did try in my life to clothe the naked. I want you to say on that day that I did try in my life to visit those who were in prison. And I want you to say that I tried to love and serve humanity.”
The lesson from that sermon 58 years ago still rings true today: Service beyond self. Love your neighbor, serve humanity and seek justice through nonviolence.
Bernice King, King’s daughter and CEO of the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, encourages us on her social media platforms to “Be a King.” The message is for us not to simply honor and celebrate her father once a year in January, but to live out and personify his principles every day. This not only applies to social injustices, but how we treat one another. The history and responsibility is weighing on us today as it did then.
Despite the obstacles and opposition, show up, render service beyond self, and remember that resistance, marches and protests are actions, and so is love. Love is a verb.