I don't know how many cities, workplaces, and university campuses had Martin Luther King Jr. celebrations. Don't know how many sang and swayed to songs like "We Shall Overcome" and "We Shall Not Be Moved." Don't know how many times Black hands linked with White ones, and White lips strained for Black cheeks, or Black arms groped White shoulders. It had to happen thousands of times on January 19 all over the country, because our nation is one committed to the process of celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream.
What is the dream that we celebrate, though?
In many ways Dr. King's dream has been hijacked by the Kuumbaya crowd, the folks who would hum and moan cliches about the content of our character, not the color of our skin. Dr. King's dream has been claimed by the people most comfortable with a vision of Dr. King dreaming, sleeping, thinking about freedom.
The fact is, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. didn't simply dream about freedom, he worked to make it happen. He was shot in 1968, not because he was dreaming but because he was working to raise the wages of garbage workers in Memphis, who were among the lowest-paid workers in that city. As he mobilized to fight for fair wages, King spoke not only of race, but of economic exploitation. Somehow, it is convenient for people to remember King for his fiery talk about the way that the races come together, but to forget he also was passionate about the ways our economy tears us apart.
The themes of King Day celebrations rarely speak to the economy. I had the privilege of participating in some of the celebrations, in Asheville, North Carolina, on January 17, and at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania on January 19. I got a charge out of watching young people sing, pantomime, and speak about Dr. King's dream, and their elders affirming their vision with important statements. Themes at these events were powerful and strong, using words like vision, millennium, love, and freedom. Along with the events I visited, I reviewed invitations of dozens of other events. Peace, justice, freedom, wisdom, and little mention of economic justice.
