Friday, January 14, 2011

"Injustice Anywhere is a Threat to Justice Everywhere"

"We should never forget that everything Adolf Hitler did in Germany was 'legal' and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was 'illegal.'" - Letter from Birmingham Jail



Martin Luther King Jr's Letter From Birmingham Jail is a powerful piece of writing.  It is a time capsule and a source of ageless wisdom.  You do not have to be black to appreciate it.  You need not be Christian to be moved by it.  But you will be more fully an American if you do read it.  It is a long letter, for which Dr. King apologized, "but what else can one do when he is alone in a narrow jail cell, other than write long letters, think long thoughts and pray long prayers?"  Read it today, if only once.  Me, I propose to reread it the 3rd Monday of every January until it no longer resonates.