Martin Luther King, Jr., walked the walk. He knew that achieving a dream took commitment and courage. Two prior posts from this weblog are worth repeating:
Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy has many aspects. His hope for a color-blind and truly integrated America truly inspires me. But, I want to point out the courage it took to take the stances he took, when and where he took them. Rev. King understood — unlike many who claim to be engaged in civil disobedience today (see our post) — that Civil Disobedience entails “Risking punishment, such as violent retaliatory acts or imprisonment” in an attempt to bring about changes in the law.” And, unlike today’s “slacktivists” who feel selfrighteous making meaningless gestures, Rev. King knew that meaningful change takes a lifelong commitment of time and energy and sacrifice.
To convert slacktivism back to effective activism, it seems important for the politically disappointed (I’m one of them!) to remember:
- – activism takes action
- – likely results are highly correlated with amount and duration of effort
- – preaching to the choir is not an effective way to change minds, and neither is self-congratulation over your moral or intellectual superiority
Click here to read Coretta Scott King’s message on the meaning of the King Holiday.
Martin Luther King Day —
they say it’s too cold
to march
. . . by dagosan
yu chang
just long enough
to leave an impression
dragonfly
boundary dispute
the dead tree
still standing
giving color
to a dry reed
blackbird
a sharp edge
at the property line
vacant lot
dandelion fluffs
and children’s laughter
flu season
she refuses
my hand
wish you were here
this very moment
shooting star
new dean
all blackboards
turn white
evening class
a toddler comes in
with her mother
……………….. by Yu Chang – from Upstate Dim Sum/ Rt. 9 Haiku Group 
“just long enough” – (2005/I) “boundary dispute” – (2003/II)
“vacant lot” & “flu season” – (2004/I) “evening class” – (2002/II)
“giving color” – (2004/II) “snow blower” – (2005/II)
“wish you were here” – (2002/I)
See Dr. King’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail — http://www.stanford.edu/group/King/popular_requests/frequentdocs/birmingham.pdf [at 4].
Comment by David Giacalone — January 15, 2007 @ 2:31 pm
[…] Although it doesn’t take Dr. King’s courage (in the face of physical threats, imprisonment and hatred) to fight for the right of every American for access to justice, the pro se movement and efforts to help the self-represented are an important continuation of his battle to remove injustice from our society. Economic inequality is a continuing vestige of racial and ethnic discrimination. Poverty (and sometimes merely being “un-rich”) has too often, and for far too long, prevented meaningful access to our civil justice system. […]
Comment by shlep: the Self-Help Law ExPress » Blog Archive » MLK and the pro se movement — January 15, 2007 @ 5:58 pm
I LOVE your terminology… slacktivism… this is going to become my favorite word indeed!
Comment by timmy — November 18, 2008 @ 10:13 am