in memorium

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." These words, written by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from Birmingham prison, are as true today as they were in 1963.

During the King holiday, the media tends to shower us with broadcasts of King's "mountaintop speech." And while that speech is remarkable, its rhetoric of liberalism and integration tends to assuage those who would shirk at some of King's more radical sentiments-- his outspokenness on class, his condemnation of the Vietnam War, and other "less quotable" remarks. The American media prefers instead to memorialize a peaceful, pacifist fixed in one moment in time instead of appreciating the entire man and instead of acknowledging the continued relevance of his philosophies, especially in a climate in which social injustice continues unabated.

Today we must continue to speak out against injustice. As our government insists upon continuing on the path of war and devastation in the Middle East, we must agitate for peace. Let's observe this memorial holiday in protest of our government's criminal behavior. We need more than ever to let our voices be heard "from the mountaintop" and in the streets!