He had less than 24 hours to live.
King was in Memphis that rainy evening because he had been there previously a week or so before and met with black sanitation workers who, while on strike against the City for better working conditions and wages, had carried a placard with a simple message: "I AM A MAN."
King was drawn to the sanitation workers plight and their struggle. In the back of his mind he had been planning the next stage of the civil rights movement- the struggle for economic rights for all Americans. To that end King was planning another march on Washington, DC. This march would highlight the insidious effects of generational poverty. From the white coal workers in Appalachia to the black sanitation workers in Memphis, King wanted to do to poverty what his movement of non-violence was doing for civil rights.
In anticipation of a court battle over an injunction the City had obtained against the march, King spoke of many things on his last full night on earth in that Memphis church. He spoke of marching in Alabama and Mississippi against the dogs and water cannons and billy clubs of his opponents. He spoke of racial injustice, and the economic power of American Black people- which he said, when combined and marshaled together was more than most nations on earth. He spoke of- if being given a choice of anytime in history to live- that he would choose that time and that moment. He spoke of why he was in Memphis and he spoke, tellingly, and in hindsight chillingly, of his possible death.
We aren't engaged in any negative protest and in any negative arguments with anybody. We are saying that we are determined to be men. We are determined to be people. We are saying -- We are saying that we are God's children. And that we are God's children, we don't have to live like we are forced to live.....
Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn't matter with me now, because I've been to the mountaintop.
And I don't mind.
Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!
And so I'm happy, tonight.
I'm not worried about anything.
I'm not fearing any man!
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord!!
On the evening of the next day, 43, years ago today, April 4, 1968, as his lawyers fought with the City over injunctions against the march, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who had steadfastly refused to allow bodyguards of any sort to protect him, was shot dead as he stood enjoying the evening air on the balcony of his motel room in Memphis, Tennessee.
If we take him at his word, Martin King died a happy man, fearing none, not worrying about anything, and having seen the glory of the coming of the lord.
See You In Court.
28 comments:
The Captain Reports:
ELECTION 2012 ......
Assistant City Attorney for the City of NMB Maria de Jesus Santovenia has filed to run for Circuit Court Judge. She fled in Group 47, the seat currenty occupied by Judge Arthur Rothenberg. Judge Rothenberg is retiring.
Ms. Santovenia has been a member of The Florida Bar for 22 years and has previously applied to the JNC dating back to at least 2006. She most recently applied for the seat of Brownyn Miller in September of 2010, she was interviewed by the JNC, but she was not sent up to the Governor.
The only other attorney (not Judge) that has filed to date is Miguel de la O, who filed in Group 42, the seat currently held by Judge Lawrence Schwartz. Mr. de la O has his name before the Governor as one of six names to occupy the Gross seat.
In other news, we expect to have two NEW Circuit Court Judges this week. Gov. Scott will be naming the replacements for Judge Emas and Judge Pineiro this week; in fact those calls could come as early as today. Gicen that five of the six names for each seat are current County Court Judges, we will have at least one open County Court seat (and possibly two) by the end of the week.
Cap Out .....
"Let no man pull you low enough to hate him." ~ Martin Luther King Jr.
King was a cheater, and a womanizer. He never held a real job in his life. There should not be a Holiday in his name. My office does not recognize his Holiday. Arizona was correct.
936. Im doing my best to follow the wise words of Dr King quoted by 929. Its tough in light of your stupid comments. But im trying.
9:36's comment is just ridiculous but I'm glad Rumpole posted it. Look at the ignorant haters that Dr. King had to put up with... and he did so with grace and courage. He never claimed to be perfect, he just tried to get us toward a more perfect society. Keep the dream alive.
936 you are obviously a bigoted republican turd. Dr. King was wrong, i hate you and all that you stand for. People like you is why this country is in a world of hurt.
9:36 -- I assume you decry Jesus as well, who never "held a real job in his life" yet somehow I would prefer Jesus a million times over a "hardworking" person like yourself. The irony of your stupid comment, no doubt, is lost on you.
Wow.
Nothing else to say about 9:36, but "Wow."
9:36 obviously hates black people and that's fine, i guess. the truth is that king was the greatest american of all time- the holliday should stand.
ps
if cheating on your wife means that you should not have a national holiday, we should get rid of presidents day also.
Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of god.
King was a cheater and used his position to obtain sex. Before you blast me what jobs did he ever hold? and you need to admit, Mr. Rump that these statements are in fact true and undisputed. A holiday for this rascal is crazy. Whats next, another holiday for Charlie Sheen?Just an opinon from a trial lawyer.
History Lesson Kiddos--
Interracial marriage-- when two people of differing racial groups marry
1967 Supreme Court decision deemed anti-miscegenation laws unconstitutional
November 2010 over 12.5 million interracial couples are in the USA
Love live MLK words-- "Never judge a man by the color of his skin but judge him by his character."
BTW-- @9:36 Go support your library by reading a book--
"Ralph Abernathy, a close associate of King's, stated in his 1989 autobiography And the Walls Came Tumbling Down that King had a "weakness for women". In a later interview, Abernathy said he only wrote the term "womanizing", and did not specifically say King had extramarital sex. King's biographer David Garrow wrote about a number of extramarital affairs, including one with a woman King saw almost daily. According to Garrow, "that relationship, rather than his marriage, increasingly became the emotional centerpiece of King's life, but it did not eliminate the incidental couplings that were a commonplace of King's travels." King explained his extramarital affairs as "a form of anxiety reduction." Garrow noted that King's promiscuity was the cause of "painful and overwhelming guilt"
We commemorate MLK because he was a man who helped focus the nation on racial inequality, because he spoke out against segregation, discrimination, and hate. Also, he stood up for African-American and poor people. We should remember that there still is discrimination, hate, and poverty in our society today.
Let us not forget all the people in the movement, men, women, blacks, Jews, Whites, Asian, Native Americans, Latinos, everyone.
Everyone is entitled to his or her own beliefs which is one of the fundamental rights this great nation was founded upon. Our First Amendment Freedoms are protected which even give 9:36 a voice. To hate him (or her) and all that think like them, makes me no better than they are and so I will wait and judge each person as an individual and by their actions.
First Amendment rights are only protected up to a point and once your speech or actions pose an actual threat threat to others (like yelling "Fire!" in a crowded theater, then that speech is no longer protected. What that "preacher" did in Gainesville, knowing the potential repercussions, is not protected activity under the First Amendment...He burned a Quran and people have died. If being an idiot were a felony, he should get life!
929
Wasn't he a Rev at a church and Pres. of SCLC? Weren't both jobs. Bu the way, what was Jesu's job?
DS.
The old MLK hagiography. The problem with MLK tributes is that they distort history on a grand scale. The struggle for black equality began long before MLK ever stepped on the scene and continued after he died. He became a deity only after he died. I have more admiration for Jackie Robinson and the hundreds of black baseball players who toiled in Southern minor league cities in the 40's and 50's. The civil rights battles of the 20th century are 1000 times bigger than any one man. If MLK had not been gunned down, he would have become a partisan political figure who would have have alienated many moderate people who now worship at the altar.
I say no De la O.
Why Larry Schwartz? He's fine.
I guess Miguel thinks that being Hispanic will get him elected.
He is not nice.
TO 7:41 PM.
Larry - Judge Schwartz - is also retiring.
Cap Out ....
9:36,
To accept imprisonment for a cause greater than self-interst, to battle unreasoned hatred with every breath, to knowingly walk into the valley of the shadow of death for the good of your fellow man, these acts are well beyond a menial labor.
No one is above human frailties, but King's sacrifice for this nation is beyond reproach and objectively proven by life he laid down for this country's citizens, even 9:36.
Not that it matters a great deal to those who choose to denigrate a truly brave man, but growing up in the deep South in the fifties and sixties, I saw up close the terrorists that MLK fought against. Their cold-blooded devotion to Jim Crow was truly frightening.
Of course, MLK was not the only man in America, black or white, who fought for equality during the turbulent overthrow of institutional discrimination, but there is no doubt that he was the public face of the movement.
Trying to imagine what might have been if he had not been gunned down is contrafactual and a perfectly worthless argument.
I knew those racists as neighbors, and, make no mistake, it was the bravest man I ever saw in public life who took them on. The fact that he was so young when he began his quest makes it even more amazing.
And finally, "Letter from Birmingham Jail" is among the greatest rhetoric (in the Classical sense) in our history, rivaled only by the Federalist Papers.
Opinions are free, indulge yourself in all of them you want, but those who remember the inequities that this brave man died fighting against know that we are not likely to see the likes of him ever again.
Wasnt Ben Franklin and Tom Jefferson both womenizers?
DS
I think Jesus was a singer in a rock and roll band. or a carpenter.
Weren't is the plural. DS wrote sbout TWO people, and used the word: womanizers, which is plural.
Rather than try to figure out who took the SAT exam for you, I would suggest that you write what you want in WORD and the computer will fix your spelling and grammar. Then you can copy and post it.
Monday, April 04, 2011 9:36:00 AM- No man is perfect. Yes he did cheat on his wife and she forgave him. Many many men and women who have left great marks in our world have fallen way short of perfection. For example Moses: a studdering murderer who became a great man; King David a murder and an adulter who repented and God blessed immensly; Paul a man who persecuted christian and then gave his life up for the cause of Christ. MLK was not perfect but he did repent and continued on. See God does not expect perfection, He expects us to recognize our faults and to strive to not fall again. Like Christ said; he who is without sin throw the first stone! I have no doubt that you have committed great faults especially looking at the terrible comments you made yet what lasting positive impression have you left in this world? The bible says God uses the vile to shame the wise. HE uses the least expected, the ones no one ever believed could change and He turns them into examples that we too can overcome our short commings and become great men and women of God. MLK was a remarkable man who despite his short comings helped change this world for the better. BEFORE YOU CAST THAT STONE YOU SHOULD REALLY THINK LEST ONE DAY YOUR DIRTY LAUNDRY BE THROWN IN YOUR FACE!
Jesus,Ghandi,Martin Luther King. See if you can think of any others to add to that list. I cant.
I admired MLK and his role in history. He deserves the holiday. The fact that the Reverend, who constantly invoked God's name, was a womanizer really just underscores how many, (but not all) Christians are just hypocrites. After all, according to the Bible, adultery is punishable by death. (As is homosexuality, fornication, etc., etc., etc.).
2:17
Thank you. But aint what I said it true?
DS
TO: Tuesday, April 05, 2011 8:29:00 PM
Under the new covenant through the blood of Christ, sins are no longer punishable by death. However we do have to worry about the consequences of sin and eternal damnation. According to the Gospel of John, the Pharisees, in an attempt to discredit Jesus, brought a woman charged with adultery before him. Then they reminded Jesus that adultery was punishable by stoning under the law of Moses & challenged him to judge the woman so that they might then accuse him of disobeying the law. Jesus thought for a moment and then replied, “He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone at her.” The people crowded around him were so touched by their own consciences that they departed. When Jesus found himself alone with the woman, he asked her who were her accusers. She replied, “No man, lord.” Jesus then said, “Neither do I condemn thee: go and sin no more.”
Christians that sin are not necessarly hypocrits, they just happen to be humans. That is where you are wrong. Being Christian does not mean being Perfect on the contrary we recognize that we are imperfect and try to make real changes. There are always some who try to walk the line and eventually they fall to one side or the other. If you truly analyse the belied it is a message of peace and love.
"And it came to pass, Jesus smacked the bitch." Pimps 6:66
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