Quote: MLK, Jr.: Shallow Acceptance

Continuing:

thoughts:

Of course, Dr. King’s words address the plight of not just Black Americans, but all oppressed groups by the hegemonic majority. It is bloody easy to give lip service to ideas that you believe in, without having any stake in the struggle. Lend your hearts, lend your hands, lend your words to the right ears, your writing to the right eyes.

We have before us today many struggles for equality, and continuing the struggle for justice, true social justice, not just the sort our system metes out as an expression of our baser bloodlust and desire for retribution.

And those who could help, looking on, snarking from the sidelines about “Oh, I wouldn’t do it that way” and yet never do it their way at all. “The time isn’t right.”

As a member of the entrenched hegemonic majority, much is blind to me, I don’t know when I’m being oppressive; I can recognize oppression, but not all of it. It isn’t guilt or shame that motivates me, however. I’m not guilty that I’ve been born to and lived a highly privileged life. I do not wish to trade on that privilege at the cost of oppressing someone else, though.