remaining awake through a revolution
January 17, 2017
This day we honor Martin Luther King, Jr. who eloquently described the change that was, and is still, happening in our society. He often referred to the dramatic changes in technology, alongside other changes which require actions from each of us to make happen.
This morning I listened to “Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution,” a speech delivered by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on March 31 1968. He spoke of a triple revolution with advances in technology, weapons, and human rights. He talks about how we as individuals must accept responsibility and create change, not just in our own behavior, but changing the institutions we are part of.
one of the great liabilities of life is that all too many people find themselves living amid a great period of social change, and yet they fail to develop the new attitudes, the new mental responses, that the new situation demands.
His introduction refers to the story of Rip Van Winkle. We all remember how he slept for 20 years, but I had forgotten exactly what he slept through. He went to sleep under the reign of King George and woke up when George Washington was President — he slept through the American revolution. This story is a apt metaphor for today’s political and social climate. If we don’t talk together about what is happening in our world and work together to make change, we are sleeping. In King’s words: “anyone who feels that he can live alone is sleeping through a revolution.”
Here are some highlights of this speech that are still true today, and inspire me to work towards kind of world where I want to live, that I believe is still possible:
Through our scientific and technological genius, we have made of this world a neighborhood and yet we have not had the ethical commitment to make of it a brotherhood. But somehow, and in some way, we have got to do this. We must all learn to live together as brothers or we will all perish together as fools. We are tied together in the single garment of destiny, caught in an inescapable network of mutuality. And whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly. For some strange reason I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. And you can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be. This is the way God’s universe is made; this is the way it is structured…
We need all of the talents and potential of the people in the world to solve the challenges that face us. Let’s look out for the individuals in our daily lives who aren’t getting the opportunities to rise to their potential.
It is an unhappy truth that racism is a way of life for the vast majority of white Americans, spoken and unspoken, acknowledged and denied, subtle and sometimes not so subtle—the disease of racism permeates and poisons a whole body politic. And I can see nothing more urgent than for America to work passionately and unrelentingly—to get rid of the disease of racism.
The opportunity to speak out against racism rises up without warning. I have found myself often unprepared to speak in the moment, and so have worked on practices which cause me to be mindful and take small, quiet actions in my daily life. I volunteer for Bridge Foundry, learning how to work with diverse teams, teaching what I’ve learned to make our tech culture more inclusive and welcoming to people who have traditionally been excluded. I’ve learned about history, so I can tell lesser-known stories, and try to pay attention to present-day voices that deserve to be amplified. Often when I’m about to share an article, I take a little extra time to look up the person who wrote it. I think about how this person’s experience and culture intersect with mine. I do a little more digging and read a few more articles and sometimes choose to share a different one. I enjoy finding new voices. I seek to be intentional about the people who influence me.
we have difficult days ahead in the struggle for justice and peace, but I will not yield to a politic of despair. I’m going to maintain hope… This time we will really confront a Goliath. God grant that we will be that David of truth set out against the Goliath of injustice, the Goliath of neglect, the Goliath of refusing to deal with the problems, and go on with the determination to make America the truly great America that it is called to be.
The world is changing, always. We need to work together, and I’m not just referring to a mass movement to curb injustice and stand up for what’s right (though I hope to be part of that). I believe we need to look for ways to work together as individuals, to speak up in the moment, to address the small injustices that we witness (and participate in) every day.
I don’t intend to appropriate the words of Dr. Martin Luther King. This speech was as much about peace, as it was about racial injustice. It is my hope that with this small blog post I might highlight how his teachings are still very applicable today. I hope someone will be inspired to read or listen to the whole original speech, and that everyone will be inspired to and feel obliged to create positive change in the world.
With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair the stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood.