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Dr. King the Revolutionary
Kill the man. Sanitize the cause. Make him an American hero. Give the people a holiday. Let the people have their sanctioned marches and rhetorical speeches on his dream… But whatever you do, never let it be known that King was killed, not for his stance on race but for his position on war. For his desire to see equity across humanity. For his work to build coalitions with other non-black groups who stood for the same things he stood for. For his push to ensure every citizen in this rich nation had guaranteed income levels so they too could compete for this dream of ours.
Dr. King was not just a Civil Rights leader who wanted little black boys and little white girls to be able to hold hands without fear of persecution. Dr. King was a revolutionary that questioned America at its very core.
I too celebrate the dream of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The problem is, I’m not sure we’re talking about the same King or the same dream. We’ve made progress, but we’re no where near where we need to be; meaning we still have work to do. ~ Sean King
Dr. King
Happy birthday Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr; today we celebrate you as an activist, as a revolutionary, as a leader, as a humanitarian, and as a man who believed in something so much that he willingly gave his life for it. Even though we continue to sanitize and in some cases bastardize your message, your impact continues to be felt all across the world today.
Was Dr. King a Civil Rights activist fighting for the rights of Black People? Absolutely. But let’s not forget that he was also a man who stood against violence, who stood against war, who stood against poverty, and who stood in front of the world and declared that America had failed to deliver on its promise to the people. He was also a humanitarian and a coalition builder who fought for people at home and abroad.
So while you’re at your day of service, while you’re repping your organization on the MLK march,while you’re doing your staged sit-ins and protest before going back home to your nice comfortable life; take a moment to reflect on who Dr. King was and what he ultimately stood for; and then ask yourself – Have you ever believed in a cause so much that you would be willing to lay your life down for it?
Dr. King the man is no more; but his work has not been completed yet.
You can not assassinate a spirit, you can only kill a man. Long Live the King… ~ Sean King
Long Live the King
You can not assassinate a spirit
You can only kill a man
You can not assassinate a spirit
You can only kill a man
The untimely end to an era
Hope shattered
Hearts broken
People left to deal with dreams deferred
Slain visions of freedom
Stretched out and lying on piss infested street corners
Previously desecrated on
By America’s king of exploitation
Capitalism
I have a dream
POW!
The towering civil rights leader
With a voice hot like an inferno
Slain
The man who had become known as Dr. King
Humbled to his knees
Forced to face the only fate
Life has guaranteed for us,
Death
With him the hopes and dreams
Of millions looking to him as their prodigy
Of millions looking to him as their prophet
Of millions looking to him as their leader
Of millions looking to him as their savior
One man who would take the cross
And give his life for humanity
One man who would mount the burden
Of millions of fearful souls
And will them to freedom
Or so they hoped
Or so they believed and prayed
When his heart quit thumping
Hope was lost
Time stopped
People were forced
To deal with the reality of trying to get somewhere
Without someone holding their hand and
Leading the way
Many gave up
Many quit trying
Figuring oppression was the destiny of life
But for some
The fight got stronger
The intensity of their spirit increased from the addition
Dr. King the man, was no more
But his spirit was forever
Determined to continue the fight
Against oppression
Determined to continue the fight
Against injustice
Determined to continue the fight
Against inequality
Determined to continue the fight
For freedom
It was a cold gloomy day
On April 4th, 1968 when a man
Oozing righteousness from his every pour
Was assassinated
Killed by a government intoxicated by the
False perception of playing God
But they failed
And to think,
They would attempt to assassinate the spirit of a man
With a man made tool of destruction
A ludicrous presumption to say the least
Yet they keep trying
And with each death I grow
Soon to become a figure so enormous
So colossal
That I will be able to tuck in a cannonball position
And roll to freedom
Crushing all opposition in my path
When they say Dr. King is dead
I hesitate
Then I laugh
Because I know his spirit
Lives vicariously through my soul
And if you look close enough
You can see the gleam of his eyes
Tucked carefully behind mine
They still do not understand
The only thing that can kill Dr. King is we
If we give up the fight for right and run
Fortunately we’ve just begun
And maybe this time they will understand
You can not assassinate a spirit
You can only kill a man
You can not assassinate a spirit
You can only kill a man
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