King Day Convocation Address

Today is a special day for us at Knox College. Every year at this time we choose to join with Americans across the nation in honoring the contribution of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to our democracy. In April of this year, it will be 40 years since Dr. King was assassinated in Memphis Tennessee. If he could be with us today, I think that King would notice some positive changes in America since his death.

Looking at this diverse audience here today, containing representatives of many different racial and ethnic groups from across the country and from around the world, Reverend King would probably note that the college audiences whom he spoke to were often racially segregated. During King's time, American foreign policy was generally the province of white men. He would no doubt be surprised to see that our current secretary of state is a black woman from Birmingham Alabama, the city where King and civil rights workers were famously attacked by police dogs and fire hoses in 1963. Dr. King would no doubt be delighted to see that in the America of 2008, the two leading contenders in the presidential race are an African-American man and a white woman. Indeed, as we gather here today, it may be tempting to see the life and work of Dr. King as belonging to the past -- and this celebration as a kind of monument to ideas that are now well-accepted and no longer controversial.

And yet, many of the issues and problems of 1968 are not so distant. Forty years ago, Americans witnessed the destruction of a White House administration, brought down by the prosecution of an ill-advised and undeclared war in Southeast Asia; a war based upon manufactured and distorted intelligence, and the desire to dominate the affairs of other nations. As he became an anti-war activist, Dr. King sought to rally his countrymen against the belligerent use of American military power. "We must find new ways to speak for peace in Vietnam, and justice throughout the developing world," he warned in 1967. Failure to do so would ensure that America would be "dragged down the long dark and shameful corridors of time reserved for those who possess power without compassion, might without morality, and strength without sight." In 2008, as we once again find ourselves in the midst of an ill-conceived and unpopular war in the third world, King's words may be even more relevant today than four decades ago.
 
Near the end of his life, Reverend King felt that the most pressing domestic challenge was to re-structure our society so that it could help and protect the most vulnerable among us. Right before he died in April of 1968, King was working on the Poor People's Campaign, another march on Washington to dramatize economic justice. "...this is America's opportunity to help bridge the gulf between the haves and the have-nots," he announced. "The question is whether America will do it...The real question is whether we have the will." Hurricane Katrina, and the continuing tragedy in New Orleans and along the Gulf Coast, demonstrates that this remains our challenge today.

Hurricane Katrina also demonstrated that we have not come as far in terms of racial justice as we might hope. The case of the Jena 6 shows that overt racism is still a threat to our American community. And while it is impossible to deny that the continuing success of the Obama campaign signals a positive direction in American race relations, we cannot accept the recent comment of a pundit who cited Barack Obama's win in the Iowa Democratic caucuses as proof that race no longer matters in America. Senator Obama is not running for president of Iowa, and November is a long way away.

But let me suggest that today is not simply an occasion for such comparisons and assessments between past and present, as important as they are. While many of the things that Dr. King fought for remain to be won, for me the core meaning of his activism transcends the specific issues of his time. Martin Luther King's movement was not about obtaining seats on a bus or at a lunch-counter, nor was it even about ending a specific war. In its largest sense, the Civil Rights Movement was about the ability of ordinary citizens to create a fair, just, and human society, even with great obstacles in their way. Those who followed King challenged America to live up to its democratic principles -- not from positions of power and privilege, but with only their convictions to sustain them. King's activism, then, is a lesson not only of how individuals can make a difference, but of how individuals must make a difference, if American democracy is to survive. It calls upon us to create a truly participatory democracy, in which all citizens are given the opportunity to shape the decisions that directly effect their lives.

But what are the steps toward creating a democracy where all citizens have the opportunity to participate in a meaningful way? The first step, it seems to me, is to acknowledge our collective and individual responsibilities for the state of our democracy. For Reverend King, the most basic step was the ability to vote. It is indeed ironic that King and his followers risked and sacrificed so much for the right to vote, and that so many eligible Americans refuse to vote or even register.

But for King and his partners in the movement, voting was only the beginning of democratic participation. They didn't depend upon presidents, congress or political parties to champion the causes they cared about. They understood that social change does not come from politicians riding in on white horses -- politicians and political structures respond to pressure, and grassroots activism can cause legislation and executive action.

Presidents Kennedy and Johnson are often described as champions of the civil rights movement -- and they certainly did more toward advancing racial equality than any presidents before them. Yet, JFK refused to introduce any civil rights legislation until pressured by King's protest campaign in Birmingham Alabama in the spring of 1963; Kennedy also refused to enforce the supreme court ban on racial segregation in interstate transportation until the Freedom Riders of SNCC forced the issue, and JFK initially tried to discourage King from going through with the March on Washington.

Now within the last week, there has been some controversy in the presidential campaign about the comparative contributions of Martin Luther King and Lyndon Johnson to the civil rights struggle. Regardless of who said what, who meant what, and why what was said was said, we need to understand very clearly that King's movement led presidents to do the right thing -- not the other way around. LBJ was crucial to the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act; a piece of legislation that he inherited from President Kennedy, and which would never have existed in the first place without the persistent pressure of the grass-roots civil rights movement, and the skillful leadership of individuals like Dr. King. Lyndon Johnson was then reluctant to push for further legislation, until King forced his hand with the protest campaign in Selma, Alabama, and Johnson secured the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Just as King realized in his time, we must understand that the great problems of our time will not be solved solely by electing the right president, or putting the correct political party in power (although these things are important). Politicians of any party generally follow the path of least resistance. Without grassroots pressure, they fall to the influence of others.

Another lesson that King's example gives us is that advocates of a truly inclusive democracy rarely possess the resources of the powerful interests against which they struggle, nor do they have huge numbers of allies in the beginning. When Reverend King and his colleagues began in Montgomery in 1955, they possessed few political rights, little money, and faced opponents who controlled the local government, the state government, the police, local media, the business community, and frequently resorted to terrorist violence. In addition, most people were either too frightened or apathetic to be active citizens. Dr. King himself estimated that a maximum of 5% of any given African American community would turn out for his demonstrations. Yet King and his followers won, while their more powerful adversaries lost. Why?

Instead of being discouraged by the resources they lacked, these activists focused upon identifying and maximizing their own advantages -- a network of strong black churches, with dedicated ministers and enthusiastic congregations; a skillful young orator; and a profound message. When the powerful ignored their orderly requests for change, King and his followers were not afraid to become disorderly, and to use the nonviolent methods available to them to stop an unjust system from operating. As we find ourselves wanting to be active citizens today, perhaps Dr. King would advise us to avoid getting bogged down worrying about the resources we lack, but instead to identify and put to best use the things we already have: our knowledge, skills, networks of friends and associates, and most of all, our collective commitment.

Now some of you in the audience may harbor the suspicion that the principled idealism of King's freedom movement is simply out of place under current circumstances. Many of the students who take my classes, especially those who want to be active citizens, express frustration over their sense of powerlessness. Political scientist Fred Alford argues that today's college-age youth feel powerless to influence their world. "They understand freedom in profoundly materialistic terms," writes Alford, and believe that only the super-rich and well-connected have a say in today's America.

But I see the potential for young people differently.

One of Dr. King's favorite activist organizations was the Highlander Folk School. Founded in Tennessee in the midst of the Great Depression, Highlander's purpose was to promote participatory democracy through training workers in interracial labor organizing -- quite a risky venture in the South of the 1930s. A crucial training ground for the civil rights movement, Highlander workshops brought together black and white activists throughout the 1950s and 60s, including Rosa Parks, Ella Baker, and Martin Luther King, and thousands of lesser-known citizens.

Last Labor Day, Highlander celebrated its 75th anniversary, with a three-day series of organizing workshops, in Knoxville, Tennessee. I made plans to drive down to the event with Peter Schwartzman, chair of environmental studies here at Knox. When we told Dean Breitborde about what we were doing, he told us he'd pay for our trip -- so we went down South representing Knox College. And I would like President Taylor to know, that whenever people asked us what kind of college would send its professors to an event such as this: we didn't look down at our shoes; we didn't shuffle our feet and mumble "oh it's a small liberal arts college you've probably never heard of"; we looked them right in the eye and said "Knox College!"

What we saw at Highlander exceeded our expectations. It was simply awe inspiring. Legendary figures, like folk singer and activist Pete Seeger was there. Bernice Johnson Reagon, civil rights activist, scholar, and founder of the group Sweet Honey in the Rock was there. Speakers shared their memories of marching with King and organizing across the South.

But as meaningful as it was to see these veterans from the 1960s, they were far outnumbered by new activists working on current issues. Issues like global warming, immigrant and migrant labor rights, land rights for indigenous people in Brazil, environmental activists from New York interested in preventing asthma in minority communities by improving air quality, labor activists trying to organize Southern workers, advocates for the poor left homeless and destitute on the Gulf coast in the wake of Katrina. In one of the workshops that I participated in, a young Latina from an environmental justice organization in Chicago formed a partnership with a middle-aged white woman from Kentucky when they found that the same coal companies polluting Chicago neighborhoods are destroying working class communities in Appalachia where they get the coal.

Professor Schwartzman was so inspired by what he saw at Highlander, that he came back to Galesburg with a renewed commitment to fostering participatory democracy on a local level. He set to work bringing together people from the local community, to renovate a space in downtown Galesburg to form a new kind of community center. Simply named "The Center," the new space is set to open in the next few weeks, and will provide a meeting place, as Peter says for individuals and groups "working to improve our community, society, and the planet's health." Plans are in the works for community-led lectures, workshops, discussions and even a summer camp, on issues as diverse as community organizing, sustainable living, nutrition, environmental justice and other subjects. Opportunities for active citizens are numerous -- everything from leading a workshop or discussion, sharing a creative talent or skill, or networking with local farmers.

Certainly, it seems to me, the potential for true participation in our democracy is growing in Galesburg; in Tennessee; and throughout this great country of ours.

I am often asked what would have happened if King had lived. Would he have been able to transform America into the Beloved Community of his dreams? I hope that it is clear, at this point in my talk, why I think that this is the wrong question. The real question is, what is each one of us doing to transform America into the community of our dreams? History teaches us that nothing -- whether good or ill -- is ever settled forever. Each generation has its own responsibility in shaping society for better or worse. The example of Martin Luther King teaches us not only how to meet our collective responsibility, but that it is indeed possible for us to do so. And because it is possible to participate in our democracy, it is our responsibility as citizens to do so. To give the final word to Dr. King:

"...human progress never rolls in on the wheels of inevitability. It comes through the tireless efforts and the persistent work of dedicated individuals...And without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the primitive forces of social stagnation. So we must help time and realize that the time is always ripe to do right."