"So the question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be. Will we be extremists for hate or for love? Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice or for the extension of justice?" - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., "Letter from a Birmingham Jail"
One problem with the study of history is that its judgments necessarily pass through someone's worldview, someone's mind, and emerge on the other side in a unique form. Not only does this mean that coming to have the objective history, meaning the absolute truth about what really happened, is unlikely, but also that what you have learned about it and perhaps communicated to others has first passed through your point of view and personal interpretation.
If I were to show, for example, a picture of my son playing tee-ball in the backyard to two different people, my mom and my high school friend who played baseball, and ask them what they think, they will have different reactions. My mom will go on and on about just how adorable he is, how he has my smile, and will even call him by name. The friend will tell me that his feet are too far apart, that he needs to choke up on the bat, and that I need to rake up all the pine straw and mow the grass. This is what you would expect, but at the same time it is amazing that different reactions can come from the same picture.
How will history remember Dr. King? Sure only time will tell, but it also depends on who does the telling. It's clear that many moderns would like to remember him as a secular human rights activist: his secular worldview showed that a better world would stem from secular equality (which is why his words and example are used in ads, for example, promoting so-called gay marriage). I can't claim to connect with the struggle of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I can't claim to share his worldview, either. In fact, any history I would try to present passes through my worldview. What I can do, however, is put aside the vague idea of "Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." that floats around in my own head the the public consciousness and interpret what he wrote. Is there any greater access to the mind of a man than through his own words, whether written or spoken?
What I would like to do is interpret some of Dr. King's words from his "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" and see if they have any meaning for us today and our culture. His letter is short but deep and packed with wisdom and insight. The quote to open this post, for example, could easily be taken out of context to justify just about anything - abortion, gay marriage, euthanasia, etc., but what does he really mean? To Dr. King, what is justice? What is extremism?
The only thing that irks me more than a cheesy and meaningless quote is one that is packed with meaning but taken out of context. In posts ahead I will try to look at his words in context and apply them to our times.
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