Remembering Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

I remember my mother reminiscing about his death. I remember she said I was still a baby in her arms the day he died. I remember her telling me how people rioted in the streets of Baltimore and burned the business district to the ground. She said it didn’t make sense to her because a FEW of the stores that were burned were the only NICE stores that would sell to blacks. You still had to shop in the basement of those stores though. And you had to check and recheck everything before you bought it because the items in the basement were usually returns from the Caucasian patrons and sometimes they came back dirty or damaged. But the stores would still sell them with new prices and for black patrons All Sales Are Final.

Sigh...

This morning, I heard a radio DJ speaking about the conspiracy theories about who killed Rev Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Sigh...

That’s all anyone seems to want to dwell on. Who did it and why? Why can’t we dwell on what is important. Who he was, how he lived, and WHY he died.

Who he was to me?

He was a man. First, and foremost. No matter what faults you want to add to him. He was simply a man. But he was a man with a voice of reason cutting through the insanity of prejudice, war and sexism that you could not deny. His vision, to me, seemed to encompass the whole human race. The darker of us gave him birth, but the dream of a better world for EVERYONE was just that, for EVERYONE. No matter the color of your skin, how you decide to or not to worship God, what side of the Mason/Dixon line you live on, or which side of the equator for that matter.

Capitalism is not the enemy. Communism is not the enemy. Democracy is not the enemy. Imperialism is not the enemy. And dare I say it? Racism is not the enemy. Whatever you subscribe to is not the enemy. But rather how we behave toward each other. How we treat each other and the world around us. It is what is born in the heart of a person that affects that person and those around them. These things hold the whole of the human race back from reaching our highest potential. And we have such a wonderful potential for good, if only we would ALL reach for it.

How he lived. Again, its only the perception of a babe in the arms of her mother, but to me he lived to be a light shining the way toward a better future. A future where everyone has enough to eat, a place to live, and a fulfilling purpose in life. A future where they read about these struggles and just can’t comprehend what it must have been like in our here and now. A future where the color of your skin does not define your life. A future where the most important belief is one we all share. And that belief? That we may be different in our beliefs, politics, ethnicity, skin color, etc. but we are still all human beings and that is more important than anything else. In short, a future where we ALL actually do unto others as we would have them do unto us.

Why he died? Because we are still struggling and afraid. Some afraid we will never make and others afraid we will. Got you there, didn’t I? Why afraid we will make it?

Well, I was watching one of those news shows discussing the country with the highest citizen satisfaction. Its supposedly Finland. Who funds this type of research, I wonder, and how much did it cost me?

Anyway, the story went on and on about how people leave their children in their strollers/buggies outside of cafes while the parents go inside the café and enjoy their meals. How they are taxed 50% of their salary and all their medical and retirement needs are met. Crime rate low, etc, etc. You get the idea. There are socials and dances and people are content. Not happy, but content.

It sounds lovely. But I am not applying for citizenship anytime soon. Because even though the Finns trust their government and each other with impunity, I didn’t grow up in such a culture and I don’t know where I’d fit in there. There is that great fear that I wouldn’t be able to and would be an outcast. A loner. All the things we aspire NOT to be here in this world. In the USA, it doesn’t matter what you believe in, the color of your skin, etc, but there is always someone to join you in your beliefs...there...in Finland, did I mention they are all Caucasian?, I would be alone in my mistrust of the government system and people in general. I would not fit in and after 40-something years on this planet I can still be taught a lot of things but I don’t think I can be taught to just trust in people. So there is no place for me to belong.

Two paragraphs later, my answer to why Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King died is that others were afraid they would have no place in his future.

And still the struggle continues...may it not always be so.

Ok, picture this:

It is April 1st at about 5:45 pm on a Tuesday evening. I am sitting in my little green hornet at the red light at the intersection of Wasbash Avenue and Northern Parkway in Baltimore, MD (Charm City USA). Minding my own business and wondering why I am still working for a living. And having one of those talks with God that probably make Him rethink the whole making of me.

Anyway, I am in the right most lane. In the lane beside me (middle lane) there is a white car and infront of it a little red car and in front of that car a blue minivan. In front of the blue minivan is a black car that crossed in front of it in a ruse to get over to the left most lane.

I am sitting there fuming as my expensive gasoline turns into more fumes to add to the greenhouse affect going on in the world when I notice that the little red car starts to edge toward the blue minivan.

Where does he think he is going? I wonder because the light has shown no indication that it is ready to change to green. Cars are still whizzing by on Northern Parkway as I, on Wasbash, wait patiently to go.

Before I can blink - BANG! The red car hits the minivan.

Idiot! I think as I watch the guy in the red car and the guy in the minivan step out of their vehicles.

All of a sudden about 8-10 men start running by my car down Wasbash Avenue toward the two guys with guns out and pointing straight ahead and ready to shoot anything that moves! The driver of the red car grabs the driver of the blue minivan and drops him to the ground as the other men yell "Get down! Get down!"

At this point I am hoping, praying and assuming that these are police officers in plain clothes because I didn't see any badges displayed. They were holding their guns with both hands so that didn't leave a free hand to display a badge and that's perfectly understandable. I much prefer their guns to be steady, wouldn't you?

On the passenger side of my car is a grassy median strip and there is a car suddenly pulling up onto the grass beside me. Just as I start to get the idea that maybe I should be panicking the woman in the car in front of me - who by the way CUT ME OFF so she could be in front of me - panicks and throws her car into reverse and starts backing up. Suddenly, I am not so worried about all the men with guns drawn and raised because I know - after the day I have had - if the idiot in front of me backs into me she will be the next driver on the ground! There are about 10 cars behind me, a car beside me in the middle lane and an unmarked police car on the grassy median strip beside me. I have no where to go!

Just as her license plate disappears from my view and I brace for impact the light turns green, thank the Lord, and the car in front of her drives off. It took her another 10-15 seconds to get it together but she finally did and put her car in drive. You would think she should have been speeding through the light. Right?

Wrong! She recovered enough to stop and be nosey as we passed by. No, I didn't look as I passed by for fear I might see a family member or ex-boyfriend needing bail money or worse yet, calling out my name and having the police turn their guns my way...