I have seen a lot of Martin Luther King, Jr. quotes pop up since the Black Lives Matter movement took root, and let's be honest, most of the time it is by white friends condemning the movement, declaring that systemic racism is just part of the black community's imagination, and claiming it to be a violent movement similar to---believe it or not---the Ku Klux Clan.
And yet, those same people have forgotten that despite his peaceful approach, Martin Luther King, Jr. was still a hated man, was still intimidated, and was still murdered. He was not considered a hero by the majority of the white population, and his nonviolent approach was still considered a nuisance to a degree that jailing, bombing, and lynching were considered a proportionate retaliation. The very white people who committed these atrocities did not see jail time. In some states they were not even breaking the law. In many of the states where they were breaking the law, the very men in uniform that were supposed to uphold the law, were more than obliged to turn a blind eye. Many people considered this "justice."
He was hated because he refused to stay silent in a society that wished he would. His words made people uncomfortable, it challenged the status quo, it threatened their privilege, way of life, and peace of mind. It exposed a violence that most had turned a blind eye to---a violence that had always been there for African Americans, but that no one really took notice of until white people began marching too---and got beaten for it on live television.
For some reason, it has never been enough for the white community to just listen to the reality of people of color and believe that what they are saying is true. It is never enough to believe that a black victim of injustice and violence is indeed a victim and not instead a perpetrator "with a background." They can never receive the benefit of the doubt. No, it requires a white consensus to be considered true, because how could people of color possibly be telling the truth about their own experiences?
And when the African American community speaks up today and says, "We are afraid for our children. Our unarmed sons are getting shot. They're going to prison at a disproportionate rate. They're being stopped and frisked for no reason," we do not listen. And then when rioting occurs---as a frustrated reaction to our REFUSAL TO LISTEN---we say "Those thugs. Those animals. If they acted like decent human beings we might actually listen to them."
But there is no listening. Whether the approach is violent or nonviolent, there has never been an intention to listen. There is only finger pointing, politicizing, gaslighting, and scapegoating. We will gladly hold the entire black community to the standard of nonviolence, because we would really prefer to not know what it is like to actually be a victim of violence ourselves. But it's okay if they do.
And of course, we don't really believe that nonviolence is the best tangible solution for injustice. After all, we were very adamant about going to the Middle East to "bomb the hell out of those bastards," but we'll keep that our dirty little secret. Because when we uphold the standard of nonviolence as if it is the most sacred belief we hold, we are somehow able to hold every African American responsible for the negative or violent words and actions of a few, and in the end use those few instances to discredit an entire movement that we just don't want to deal with. And of course, again, that's only the case in THIS movement. Because Planned Parenthood bombings and the cold-blooded murder of an abortion doctor in the middle of a church service certainly don't discredit the pro-life movement, and we would never hold EVERY Conservative Christian pro-lifer responsible for the actions of a few. But again, that's our dirty little secret. Because you know what? We seem pretty hell bent on doing everything that we possibly can to ignore the racism in our hearts, our communities, and our justice system. Our churches, too. Why? Because it makes us uncomfortable. Because we care more about not having racial tension than we do about seeking actual peace and justice. Let's just sweep it under the rug. It's too uncomfortable. It's too threatening.
There is a reason I've been saying "we" this whole time...because I used to say those same things and believe them too. And when I finally took the time to listen to what the black community was actually saying instead of what white news commentators were saying about the black community on television, I quickly realized how very wrong I had been. It is quite humiliating to realize that you are much more racist than you had ever imagined---not in a mean-spirited way, but in an ignorant lock-your-doors-in-the-black-neighborhood way. That's what many of us are: willfully ignorant. We aren't clan members. We don't believe that people of color have less worth than us. But we are perfectly comfortable with a justice system that treats them that way, so long as we're not the ones on the receiving end of it and we're the ones who benefit.
If you really do love and admire MLK as much as you seem to, then take the time to contemplate this lesser-known quote. And then go and use your white privilege to educate your white friends and family, because when the words and stories and struggles of African Americans come out of a white mouth, THEN they will listen. It is an unfortunate truth, but that is the way it is---so GO---use the skin and the voice that God gave you to seek TRUE peace and justice. Don't merely open the eyes and hearts of others---blindside them with the truth so that they can never go back to thinking and believing what they used to.
"I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro’s great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen’s Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to “order” than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: “I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action”; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man’s freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a “more convenient season.” —Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
