"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." -- Martin Luther King, Jr.
My morning got off to the most amazing start yesterday.
This was my first year attending the Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Breakfast at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center.
By chance I came across an announcement for the event in the Boston Business Journal a few weeks ago during my lunch hour. I'd been so disheartened by some mean-spirited comments I'd come across in the "comments sections" of articles I'd read on-line discussing immigration, and others referencing the recent banning of Ethnic Studies by the state of Arizona, that when I saw Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s image emblazoned on the half-page ad, I told myself I had to go.
So I went.
And-I-LOVED-it.
To my surprise, the State of Massachusett's newly elected Auditor Suzanne Bump sat to my left, and a retired school teacher who'd taught English for thirty-years and had not missed the event since its first year, sat to my right.
And although I came away from the event feeling uplifted, I was still troubled. Why? Because even with all the progress we've made in our country, intolerance and hate-speech really haven't changed.
The questions weighing heavily on me, as asked by key-note speaker Dr. Melissa Harris-Perry, Associate Professor of Politics and African American Studies at Princeton University, when quoting King:
"Where do we go from here?"
... Chaos or Community?
I bet you probably already know which way I'd like to see our beloved country go.
Some pictures from the event: Boston Herald"In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." -- Martin Luther King, Jr.
Clip of Dr. Harris-Perry's address on Boston Channel
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Nice post. I wish i could attend events like this. Sounds amazing.
ReplyDeleteChristopher, the breakfast was inspiring and I'm really happy I attended. I've already added it to my calendar for next year. It will be interesting to see how different the climate is one year from now. Great to see you. Thanks for dropping by. : )
ReplyDeleteglad that you enjoyed it! maybe i can join you next year... :)
ReplyDeleteI would love that, Katie ; )
ReplyDeleteWhat a great opportunity! Events like that are amazing, but yeah...it's sad to see we haven't really come that far. In some ways yes, in others no. Really, a lot of people still seem to feel the same, but thank God, the laws now protect minorities! Unfortunately, people find many ways to get around the laws via covert job discrimination, etc. It's a shame and I'm with you...hopefully it will be different in the future. Maybe when Latinos take over??? ;)
ReplyDeleteOur goal as parents is to set a good example for our son. Like I said on your post about this same topic, he's only eight and sees people as just that, people. Physical attributes mean nothing, and I love that. I'm hopeful that the future will surprise us in a "good" way. Thank you for commenting, don't know how I missed this one! *hug* And I do plan on attending again, next year. : D
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