Who has Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Legacy Benefited?

Journalism can take one to all sorts of weird places to meet people from all walks of life. Over the weekend, I covered a community forum event at a local synagogue in Southern Maryland.

The question of the day: Who has really benefited from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy?

Initially, that question bothered me. It seemed pointed and not in a great way. Who benefited from King’s legacy? Well, don’t we all? Sure, but how? In what ways? What actually is his legacy?

These were all things that those participating in the forum had to consider. It should be noted that a majority of the room was, obviously, Jewish and were also White. It should also be noted that the question was presented by a non-profit organization run by a Black woman.

After she asked the question, people started throwing around generic buzzwords like “hero, brave,” and “courageous.” And yes, those are things that we think of when King comes to mind, but that’s way too simplistic and minimal.

And that really made me think: The way we think of King today is not the way that he should be remembered. It isn’t his legacy. Those words, while fine and complimentary, are simple. King was not a simple man. He was very complex and often teetered the edges of being the peaceful center of peaceful protests to being a militant leader who was not afraid to be beaten, battered, jailed and, ultimately, killed for what he believed in.

On this day, the celebration of his birthday, you’ll hear many people discuss King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech that has moved generations of people and still does to this day. Especially this part:

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up, live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., 1963

And then you’ll hear people talk about things like how we have Barack Obama, the nation’s first Black President. People will have you know that there are black success stories in this country and many of them started with King’s speech and what he did.

But then, it comes back to that question. Who has truly benefited from King’s legacy? What has it become? What was it intended to be? As you celebrate him, you won’t hear about the Black lives that are still being slain on the street at astronomical rates by law enforcement around the country. You won’t hear about the inequities Black professionals face across the country or the countless lives that are living in poverty, which was something King made an effort to fight against before his life was taken. You won’t hear about the gentrification of countless cities that had booming Black populations that are now being dwindled down to less than half of the city’s residents. You won’t hear about how there are legislators at the highest political levels in the country who will fight to diminish the very piece of legislation King and many other Civil Rights leaders fought to uphold.

It seems that today, King’s dream and his legacy are only used to keep this nation in a place of complacency and silence. Many will act as if King was some sort of unassertive, pliable leader that he never was. They will prop up his moments of humility and peace without describing his moments of vigor, aggression and assertiveness. It was never one or the other with King. It was whatever he had to do to accomplish his ultimate goal which was justice for all.

And that justice, quite frankly, is something we still have not achieved to this day. So who did King’s legacy really benefit? Look at what it’s being used for. It is powerful, but often misinterpreted — sometimes unknowingly, but sometimes willfully.

At the event I attended, there were some who claimed equality has been achieved. Because there are Black success stories — your Ben Carson, Barack Obama, LeBron James type success stories — America has moved into its finest post-racial state. As a reporter, I could not interject on the discussion. But sadly, that’s the kind of thinking that is fostered by the gross misinterpretation of King’s legacy and his powerful words to us.

King never fought for the exception — he fought to change the rules. The exceptions were in mind, but leave it to those people to continue to be exceptional. Equity, justice and fairness are not exceptions. They are everyday human rights. And King died for that. And, clearly, his death was not enough to get us there.

But by no means does that mean his death was in vain and his life’s work was meaningless. In fact, it amplifies it. What King did was lay down the groundwork, just another example, of how far we should go when fighting for the just treatment of others.

So who has King’s legacy benefited? All of us. What does it mean? Equality. Do we have that yet? No. I’m not sure if we ever will. But it’s worth fighting, and dying, for, just as King did. Once again, simple terms are being used to define a complex man. But sometimes, doing what is right is just that simple.

So remember what King really stood for. Remember what he died for. Fight the evil that killed him. Fight to make his dream a reality. King’s words didn’t end the journey for equality, it shot it forward. And it’s our job to keep it alive.