5 Reasons Why We Should All Celebrate Martin Luther King’s Birthday

(Note — They have nothing to do with race)

Introduction & Rationale

Happy Martin Luther King Day! Today we celebrate the birth of a great and influential American. Some folks would call him a hero. Others might call him a great leader or the face of the 1960s civil rights movement. Some may think of him as a menace or trouble maker (remember, at the time of his death, he might have been the least popular and most despised he’d ever been). Wherever you stand on the man, the movement, and the current state of civil rights and civil liberties in the country and the world, there are still at least 5 good reasons to stop, reflect and learn something new today.

I’m not an historian. Nor am I an activist. I’m just a thankful American citizen, reflecting on the legacy of someone that I feel most people don’t dig into enough to understand the layers of the man, the complexity of what was going on around him at the time, and most importantly, what we can still learn from and apply to our complicated and troubled country today.

I’m inspired to write this note in response to a number of ongoing conversations that I hear all too often. Whether it is friends and family on the left who say things like “Why wont ‘they’ acknowledge certain parts of our history” while at the same time, friends and family on the right say things like “Why won’t ‘they’ stop talking about race”. In recent conversations with my regular discussion group, as well as with trusted colleagues and advisors, we’ve explored the current social, political and spiritual quagmire our country finds itself in, and wondered about from where the values that will guide the future of our country will come. Today, after my morning meditation and workout, I felt compelled to share what I believe are 5 indisputable points, for why every American should take a moment on this holiday (like we should on every holiday) and reflect on the reason for the day, by exploring the person (or persons and events) for whom we are intended to celebrate.

5 Indisputable Points

#1 Dr King is an American Success Story

Here is an individual American, from humble beginnings, who captured the attention and respect of millions of people on the world stage for an ideal that he lived and died for. He carried himself with class and grace, earned prestigious degrees and won numerous awards. By any account, we, who celebrate individual success in one’s chosen area of work, can look to someone who accomplished so much, at so young an age, and reflected the best of what we all become in our chosen fields.

#2 The Not-So-Quiet Power of Nonviolence — Taking the lead from other sage leaders before him, Dr King showed the ability of an organized, focused, non-violent, grassroots movement to speak to power and drive change. My favorite story was the Montgomery Bus Boycott. It showed that consumers have power to make a statement with their pocketbook. If a company or organization chose not to serve them well, they need not patronize that organization. Those folks were willing to make real sacrifices, walking mile after mile every day, to make a point. Sadly, today there are a number of copy-cat boycott movements that seem to only muddy the water of our discourse, instead of showcasing the ability to move in a productive and coordinated way from a group that felt disenfranchised. But it made a point…and in a world where we need more equity and empathy across the board, this is a timely lesson for us all.

#3 The Value of Engaging in a Shared Mission — In Dr King’s Legacy, there are many examples of him galvanizing different religious and political factions for positive outcomes. I like to highlight that the most advances were made during the civil rights movement once people who had been on the sidelines, joined in the movement in a substantive way (take for example the second march across the Edmond Pettus bridge in Selma. Then, leaders from various religious groups dropped some of their sectarian issues to unite around issues upon which they could agree. Today, I see similar parallels in religious coalitions like United Religions International, that exists to “…bridge differences between people of all beliefs, to create community, and to solve local and global challenges…with work that focuses on 14 areas that address the world’s most pressing issues.”. This American innovation is one from which we can take pride and inspiration.

#4 Relevance of Organized Religion — Dr King’s actions (and those of his colleagues around him) showed that religious organizations can have a relevant place in driving discourse, engagement and action on real issues that matter every day. In today’s increasingly secular America, this is a lesson we can clearly take to heart. Today, we likely have more people with more religions than ever before. We have a growing number of people who are ‘spiritual but not religious’, agnostic or atheistic as well. The growing diversity of religious beliefs and expressions is not the problem. Rather, it is something that should be celebrated, as religious freedom is one of the critical beliefs on which this country was founded. Stil, today, we live in a fractured America, where there are too many stories of individual faith leaders, and entire organizations who have seemed to have lost their way, betrayed their values, and diminished their relevance in the eyes of the public. In a country and a world where we need something to believe in, Dr King, while far from a saint, gave us an example of leadership we can emulate and evolve.

#5 Togetherness — While related to point #3 above about Shared Mission, I see togetherness as something even more important. People bonding together over a common goal or challenge may be likely to return to old habits and alliances once the crisis has passed. Togetherness leads us to something different. Dr King, and the legacy of the organizations after him, highlighted that for positive change to happen, we had to come together as a people and act in a way that represented and recognized the values and contributions of the entire community or ecosystem. If we are to truly leverage our diversity as our strength (as it really can be if we embrace and create space for all legitimate perspectives), then we must consider togetherness and diversity from a multi-dimensional perspective that takes into account all of who we are as a people — majority vs. minority, male vs. female, old vs. young, straight vs not-straight, formally educated vs. practically educated, left vs. right…and so much more and everything in between. We have more in common with each other than not. Holidays and special events give us the opportunity to recognize that, and find a better way together.

Closing & Call to Action

I’m not here to tell anyone what to think or what they should do. Rather, I’m here to suggest some things that people can do to make this day matter a little more differently than they might have in years past. Here are four friendly suggestions.

1. Instead of listening to talking heads and experts, take a quick spin to YouTube and listen to at least Dr King’s lectures or speeches (please note, you are not allowed to listen to the “I Have a Dream” speech)
2. Stop & reflect on the positive lessons and contributions that Dr King and others of the day, made to our society as we know it
3. Meditate or reflect on your own reasons for why we should celebrate this, or any other holiday for that matter, around people. Share this in someone in your world with whom you don’t see eye-to-eye on political or religious issues
4. Seek to find at least one way to create empathy and/or compassion and understand the perspectives of your fellow Americans. Collectively, we as Americans have a lot to offer each other if we can find compassion in and for each other.

I hope you have a blessed, safe and wonderful day today. Please remember, we are all in this together. Let’s make the most of the wonderful gifts we have been given.