Change, Radical Activism and Social Justice
Today, we celebrate the 27th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the 2nd Inauguration of President Barack Obama. Both of these men symbolize change, progress and the United States of America. During President Obamaās speech- he brought us back to the words of our founding fathers:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, which among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.
Obama asserted that these truths have not been executed for all people. The statement itself excludes women, and we all know that our country allowed slavery and excluded people of color from these unalienable rights. Many of us know that people with disabilities, gay people and transgender have also been excluded and severely oppressed.Ā Many of us know that systemic poverty prevents a large percent of the national and global population from ever realizing their rights.Ā Although Obama speaks liberally on a platform of Federal power- Martin Luther King Jr., spoke radically from the trenches of the oppressed.Ā
Martin Luther King, Jr. called out for us to strike down the system of racism, to challenge the injustices of capitalism and to demand truth and peace during a time of war. Martin Luther King Jr. was not a liberal politician, he was a radical activist. His existence, his actions and his impact demand that we acknowledge and respect the radical activists and movements that challenge injustice today.
Martin was not a perfect man. He continued to promote sexist values and patriarchal culture. This reminds us that no hero or an idol alone will deliver us to justice.Ā It reminds us that leadership requires accountability. It reminds us that accountability is defined recognizing the rights of every person.Ā It reminds us that recognizing the rights of every person is done by an equal community of every person.Ā Barack Obama reminded us today:
ā¦that when times change, so must we; that fidelity to our founding principles requires new responses to new challenges; that preserving our individual freedoms ultimately requires collective action.
Before he died, Martin was in the process of organizing a resistance to economic injustice. Called āThe Poor Peopleās Campaignā, Martin considered it the second part of the civil rights movement. In his manifesto, the Crisis in Americas cities: An Analysis of Social Disorder and a Plan of Action of Poverty, Discrimination and Racism in Urban America, he called for ādisciplined urban disruptionāĀ to peacefully resist these injustices. This movement sought to hold the government accountable and guarantee housing and income to every single citizen- an economic Bill of Rights. Ā
Now, when I say question the whole society, it means ultimately coming to see that the problem of racism, the problem of economic exploitation, and the problem of war are all tied together. These are the triple evils that are interrelated.Ā āWhere Do We Go From Here, 1968
After he was killed, the resistance continued with the establishment of a 300-person tent city near the Capitol. This protest was endorsed by Presidential candidate Robert Kennedy, Jr. - another martyr of the civil rights movement. After bad media coverage and failure to prompt a response from Congress, the protest was dispersed after six weeks.
Occupy Wall Street, more than 30 years later, established a tent city in privileged zones of power- exposing the economic and political elite to the faces and indignation of poverty and oppression. Occupy Wall Street was suppressed by the government, the corporate media and the silence of the average American. The media and the government framed the essence of these movements as violent, unsanitary and a threat to national security- coordinating a nationwide crackdown and eviction of all Occupy camps. The FBI monitored the Occupy movement as a terrorist threat, despite its non-violent principles and adherence to Martin Luther Kingās prescription of ādisciplined urban disruptionā.
I have seen the front lines of these protests- rife with police intimidation, brutality and inter-protest infiltration. I have seen the disparities in the corporate media coverage with the realities of non-violent and loving assemblies. I have seen crowds of thousands chanting, marching and discussing- while the media and politicians remained silent. Much like the citizens of the civil rights movement- Occupy activists have been threatened, harassed, shamed and segregated from their peers and mainstream society. Just last week, internet activist Aaron Swartz was martyred after his disobedient efforts to promote accessibility of information.
There is no justice in following unjust laws. Itās time to come into the light and, in the grand tradition of civil disobedience, declare our opposition to this private theft of public culture-Ā Aaron SwartzĀ Guerilla Open Access Manifesto, 2008
For us to honor these martyrs and follow Martinās call to justice- we must dismantle the systems of racism/sexism/ableism, challenge the crimes of capitalism and transform a military society into a culture of peace. We must demand accountability for economic crimes, address the prison-industrial complex, refuse to accept the collateral damage of our foreign drone strikes and take a stand on social justice. We must respect the sisters, the brothers, the occupiers, the transformers and the angry militants who are taking a bold stand.
There is no justice in suppressing the radical drive toward righteous transformation. Martin was arrested for it, shamed for it and died for it- so that we might realize how to stand for it. Today, I call on my President Barack Obama and my fellow Americans to take a stand and respect the words of radical activist Martin Luther King, Jr. Stop arresting, shaming and blacklisting the social justice activists who speak up and disobey in peace; stop suppressing our public assemblies about these changes; stop expanding our military in the name of peace; stop dismissing the collateral damage of war. Stop the injustice.Ā Take a stand and challenge the status quo. At the very least, respect and support those who do.
This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. -Martin Luther King, Jr.Ā I Have a Dream, 1963