Someone tweeted to me that my father “didn’t offend people.” At the time Daddy was killed, a poll reflected that he was the most hated man in America. Most hated. Many who quote him now & use him to deter justice would likely hate him too if they truly studied #MLK. #MLK50Forward pic.twitter.com/ZwFXWhkoDV
— Be A King (@BerniceKing) February 24, 2018
People were offended by him speaking truth to power, calling attention to and engaging nonviolence to end racism, war and poverty. In fact, his ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail’ was in response to clergy who called him an “outside agitator.” #MLK pic.twitter.com/py6uhescC2
— Be A King (@BerniceKing) February 24, 2018
****
He was not passive. Nonviolence is not passive. It is active, principled, love-centered noncooperation with evil. #MLK90 #MLK
— Be A King (@BerniceKing) January 15, 2019
Many who quote him now would have hated him then. He was assassinated for trying to eradicate the evils some claim he’d support today. But he was a Christ-centered, love-fueled, justice-seeking, peacemaking, globally-minded, nonviolent revolutionary & prophet. #MLK90 #MLKDay #MLK pic.twitter.com/4kj2HgIYk0
— Be A King (@BerniceKing) January 21, 2019
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And this amazing clip that’s not frequently seen: pic.twitter.com/HhcQKwXyEn
— Emo Desperado (@JoyAnnReid) January 21, 2019
My annual #MLKDay thread. Enjoy. Don’t be out here in these streets pretending like he’s Santa Claus preaching like a Black Baptist.
— Broderick (@BroderickGreer) January 21, 2019
****
https://twitter.com/BrentNYT/status/1087338524779708416
“We’re coming to get our check.” - MLK on reparations. #MLKDay https://t.co/EUYwlCdF9j
— Broderick (@BroderickGreer) January 21, 2019
The Obama Diary 
Congratulations, Jacqueline! I know each of us will honor his legacy with action. I walked in a children’led march yesterday hosted annually on Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend by Don’t Shoot Portland. It was great!
Beautiful, Judith!
WHY ARE WHITE NATIONALIST CLAIMING THE HARASSMENT NEVER TOOK PLACE AND BLAMING THE VIETNAM VETERAN
Here are some facts…
1. Nathan Phillips did approach the Covington Catholic group because they were screaming and harassing black Israelites.
2. Nathan stood between the Covington Catholic group and black Israelites and sang an honoring song for the fallen soldiers, in hopes it would deescalate the harassment against the black Israelites.
3. Nathan acted out of heart and seen an attack on other human beings by a hateful group of Catholics. This is how Native American people are in general, very compassionate and caring of all human life.
4. Nathan did not want the Covington Catholic group to bring physical harm to the black Israelites and feared for their safety. As a Veteran of the United States Military, Nathan seen it was his civil duty to protect American citizens from a fascist racist group of youth and adults. Especially when Federal DC were no where to protect the black Israelites Americans.
5. Fox News and the community from which these Catholic students come from are turning the story around to shelter and protect these boys and girls. (Indigenous Life Movement)
Sandmann’s statement was emailed to RunSwitch.
RunSwitch: “The GOP-aligned firm was founded by advisor to Sen. Mitch McConnel’s Super PAC, Kentuckians for Strong Leadership and longtime GOP operative Scott Jennings.”
(https://www.facebook.com/IndigenousLifeMovement/photos/a.358351292254/10155456545537255/?type=3)
Having watched the video yesterday, it was clear to me that red-hatted boys and their buddies were the aggressors. They surrounded Nathan Phillips and chortled their insults with glee. They were not at all afraid of the Native American elder and the people he had with him. They were not threatened by anyone but rather did the threatening.
This is a beautiful post, Nerdy, to greet the day. Thank you so much. I plan to concentrate today on Dr. King’s goodness and worth, and not the barbarism in our country back then and, sadly, still. We can’t forget, but I for one am going to celebrate actually being “old enough” to live through his final years ~ when Dr. King offered up himself for the betterment of all humans on the planet. I revered him then, and the history of his life as I understood it is permanently in my memory bank, and passed on to the next generations in my own family.
I can’t find an actual link to this nj.com story, but it was quoted by the New Jersey Historic Preservation Office in a post today. (I was four years out of a high school in New Jersey when this occurred, but in another city.) Here’s some of the story. Love the quotes.
***
The week before he was assassinated, King spent several days in our state, speaking to massive crowds in Elizabeth, Jersey City, Newark & Paterson. The story of one of the largest appearances – at South Side High School in Newark – merits a spotlight. King’s sixth Newark stop on March 27, 1968, it was kept a secret from the students until they entered the school auditorium for a “special assembly.” … Many of the students were in shock when King appeared at the assembly that afternoon.
“I was just in awe of everything – all the distinguished people, all the community members, all the reporters,” said Brenda Swann, then a sophomore at South Side; today a special education administrator in the Newark school district. “We knew then something very significant was happening, something historic. And, we knew we were all part of it.”
King told the teenagers to love themselves, to be the best they could be at whatever they chose to do, and instead of adopting the 1960s motto, “burn, baby, burn,” they should “learn, baby, learn … so you can earn, baby, earn.”
“The place went nuts when he said that,” remembered NJ Assemblyman William Payne who was also in attendance. “He was giving a strong message to the young people in their language. The kids were mesmerized.” It would be the final time King appeared before a group of students.
Beautiful.
I’ve also read that the punk kid stated that he wasn’t threatening. Just the mere fact that he was standing there, proud and puffed up in his MAGA hat,is threatening enough. They must think we’re all as stupid as they are.
After reading the statement that kid’s family attorney no doubt wrote, we know exactly where he got his racism and bigotry from … right at home, around the dinner table, probably every night, and around the neighborhood. Can’t stand looking at any of them, but I think they were all wearing MAGA hats, and we all know teenagers usually get their MAGA hats from their MAGA parents. It’s inbred and because a whole swamp of like-mindeds are covering for him, that kid will NOT be learning any life lesson from his actions. All you have to do is look at his face ~ you’ll see that face in a courtroom some day, pleading innocent, and it won’t be to a traffic offense.
I need chocolate candy!
The look on that kid’s face was pure arrogance and privilege, forget about the racial aspect for a moment. What was it about that kid that made him think he could stand in the face of an adult, a senior, and think that they were somehow on equal footing?
Yes, what was it about that kid. And who taught him he could get away with being so arrogant – and who taught him such disrespect for an older person was okay. From everything I know about life and teenagers, I’d say his parents. I’m finding it very hard to get that kid’s face out of my mind today.
He had the same look Kavanaugh had on his face. He is cut from the same Kavanaugh fabric, the fabric of white entitlement.
Grrrrr.
He made me think immediately of what a teenaged Justice Kavanaugh would have looked like with his rich, spoiled pals.
THIS
Pence and trump visited the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial today. Grotesque. Hope they scrubbed down the granite, after they left.
Bamm and Boom!
Asked if she viewed the cancelling of her trip as Trump retaliation:
Nancy Pelosi: “I would hope not. I don’t think the president would be that petty, do you?”
Just donated to the campaign of the next president of the United States, Kamala Harris; happy day!
And her first stop is going to be in South Carolina, not Iowa, but in South Carolina at an AKA event. SKEE-WEE!!!!
This is awesome and very smart.
LIke Christmas in January:)
I knew that when Obama came on the scene, the racists would come for us harder. They saw what we and our allies could do and there is an all out war to beat us down so hard that it will be another 100 years before POC and Black people in particular dared to lift up our eyes, get off our knees and try once again to claim our humanity and full citizenship. But this time it will be different; we are being bruised and bloodied, assailed on all sides, but we know, woke women and their allies, Black people and other POC, that if we ignore the noise, vote and bring everyone we know with us, that we can win. All of the gerrymandering, the literal stealing of and suppression of votes lets us know that they know that their days are numbered.
One of my friends brought up what happened with Carol Mosely-Braun and I had to talk her off a cliff by explaining point by point how this time is different.
All of these democratic women running are standing on the shoulders of remarkable women from Shirley Chisholm to Hillary Clinton; the have the boost, with millions of us providing the final push, to crash through the glass ceiling into the light of an unquestioned victory. That ceiling already has large cracks, that the women of the House have widened, all we have to do is push.
It is what women have done in the last 2 years, from the marches to #Me Too, to the Indivisible Groups that are mostly powered by women, to running for and winning offices on all levels of government, that has kept me from despair. I am now hopeful and getting my joy back thanks to their bravery in stepping up.
Have to add our Feminist-in-Chief, PBO to the list. In many ways if there had been no PBO there would be no Kamala Harris who could jump in the race and e considered someone who could be a front-runner; nor would she be someone who could garner donations from 50 states within 30 minutes of announcing without the legacy of our beloved POTUS44ever, Barack Hussein Obama.
So succinctly said, CEB. I totally agree.
(thanks Nerdy W.)
So this Catholic school has a lot on the line after teaching a group of young men to disrespect women’s rights. Teachers and the priestly wuns involved allowed students to go to this event wearing political hats. ALL LIFE? What did they think would happen?
MAGA is wed to the worst of the far right agenda and all the hate and disrespect that comes with it = against the rights of anyone not a white male. Teenagers here were taught this and they acted on it. Blame this Catholic School, the parents, McConnell, and Trump. Don’t let (eg McConnell’s super pac Runswitch) make $$ hay out of this public exposure of the Putin Party’s racism, misogyny, white supremacy and hatred.
Wish it weren’t Jake Freakin’ Tapper.
You and I both, Tapper has a way of making it all about him. He seems like a well-coifed prick.
She won’t let him get away with any of his normal shenanigans.
She’s observed President Obama handle Tapper…she will be good…and besides …best to take him on early…to set the tone
for the rest of the press…
Yes, take him on and dismiss him early.
Amennn
Dr. King lives on through all of us and others who fight for peace.
Morihei Ueshiba founded the martial art Aikido, a non-violent way to victory in the face of conflict:
“You are here for no other purpose, than to realize your inner divinity and manifest your inner enlightenment….
One does not need money, power or status to practice the Art of Peace. Heaven is right where you are standing and that is the place to train.”
Dropping this here:)
It’s taken them long enough! We have a friend, rapidly becoming more of an “acquaintance” now because of our political differences, who is probably still rationalizing his support of Trump. For a while, after the election, we tried to continue socializing but we soon tired of steering the conversation away from his right-wing politics to more neutral subjects. Life is becoming too short; it’s not worth it to us to tiptoe around people who can’t face the reality of what they’ve done to our country.
We may need this gif on hot stand by:)
That’s the look of a strong woman saying ” Bullshit”. I am so ready for My Senator to take on the men in the repug party.
‘to change feet’ 😂😂😂
New vote + more hostage-taking from McConnell & Putin’s boys to be announced this weekend:
“$12.7 billion in disaster aid as well as government funding for the rest of the year. And…$5.7 billion for the wall.”
(https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/1/21/1828164/-McConnell-bows-to-Trump-pressure-and-schedules-a-shutdown-vote-he-insisted-he-wouldn-t-allow)
Designed to “force Democrats to vote against bipartisan funding levels, aid for disaster-hit communities and an extension of the VAWA.”
Illegitimate president is compromised. We don’t negotiate with terrorists.
Open the Government first = Dems pls stick to your fundamentals.
Exactly. NO negotiations while 800,000 federal employees aren’t getting paid because Trump shut down the government.
Say Amennnnn
Grrrr. Can’t wait until trump and gang are gone.
I guess the consensus is that this person is a HUGE plus to have on your team:)
Yep, being able to count votes is almost a moral imperative. Leading up to 2008 then Senator Obama was very effective because he and his team focused on the delegate count.
Ah, remember the famous Plouffe spreadsheet.
A law firm in Jacksonville, Fl. has that same slogan: Morgan and Morgan; For the people.
I follow that guy on twitter – strong Democrat – and I was thinking this earlier today! Used to live in Florida and his commercial was on the teevee every half hour!
The battle lines are being drawn …sides are being taken….We are taking NO Prisoners…
All of this and more from A-A women voters. Do NOT even think about coming for Kamala.
Keynesian, oh boy, now we’re cooking!
Testing, testing. Trying to post……
Hi, there!
Hi 57andfemale, have not seen you here for awhile.
truth=> the moment Senator Kamala announced that she is running for POTUS, I immediately thought of you Mr. Bobfr. I have been waiting for your reaction since ….
Your dream has come true; how excited are you?
Thank you Linda & CEB!! I haven’t stopped smiling since I saw the announcement tweeted!!! 🙂
Love this: ” … she could answer using interpretive dance and she is still more qualified … ”
If this were to work out, it would be the first time Pence was ever first at anything in life, I’m sure.
Pence also lied to the public that “Russia was not involved in the campaign”, that Flynn did not talk to the Russians about getting rid of sanctions.
That might wipe that sappy fake smile off Pence’s face.
The fact that Howard is her alma mater is another smile-maker.
The AKA soros are a formidable force socially and politically, with chapters all over the country. KH running for the dem. nomination and the presidency is a 100 year old dream come true. I did not pledge (too much of a loner and I went to local unaffiliated colleges), but several of my friends did and several of my teachers were AKA. Somewhere in their local files is a photo of me receiving a scholarship from the local chapter. My neighbor was a Delta. Black Greeks, female and male, are proud members for the rest of their lives. They have connections that will be invaluable to KH.
I keep thinking about KH’s mom, an immigrant from India who came here to go to college and stayed. Married another Stanford professor who came from Jamaica. Even after the marriage ended, she raised her daughters Kamala and Maya to be unapologetically Black in where they lived, where they worshipped and where KH went to school. Parents who try to raise their bi-racial kids as color-blind in the US do them a disservice. They reach adulthood poorly equipped to face a racists world that does not recognize all that they are. KH’s parents armed her for the world as it is, now how they wished it to be.
Your post takes me back to my college days walking the campus of FAMU in Tallahassee, Black Greeks!
This is where most of the young women and young men from my high school went to college. Most of us were the first in our families to go to college and we carried that responsibility with us on every college campus. I stayed in town (not enough money to go to FSU even though I had been accepted) and went to the Junior College then UNF soon after it opened. I did well, but was often the only Black person in a class or a group. Fortunately, I had the kind of will that kept me from taking a back seat to anyone or anything.
FSU oh yes, my roommate and I would walk the campus of FSU marveling at the size of the campus. What really got to us was the size of the book store. It was the size of a medium department store.
History is the greatest recorder of word and deed.
interesting to see that Senator Kamala’s campaign slogan, “For The People”, is the same as the harshtag that Speaker Pelosi and a number of Democrats and Democratic Party organizations have been using in their communication.
Her slogan for her Senate campaign in California was Fearless for the People.
oh! I did not know that ….
I see that she is constantly centering the people
I don’t know about you guys and gals, but Kamala gives me a tingle up my leg. You know, like the tingle that Chris Matthews says Barack gave him.
If you hadn’t mentioned Chris Matthews, we would have been fine with that.
That said 🙂 Kamala is off to a pitch-perfect start, I think! Truthfully, I’d like to see Julian Castro be her running mate, at least for now.
WOW, I was thinking the exact same thing.
I like the fact that Kamala is really quick with her answers, and that they are very substantive answers.
She is the real deal. Calm, deep, compassionate, strategic thinker, no BS, confident – she is ALSO a woman who is full of joy, someone who smiles readily and is happy. She is comfortable in her own skin.
She of course was DA in my town for years. But the first time I encountered her in person was at a small gathering super early in President Obama’s first run. She was there with his sister Maya. Both super lovely people and very accessible. Smart, engaging, forthright, honest, thoughtful.
The second time I saw her up close was at a small gathering at a lawyer’s office where she was giving a talk with Beau Biden on gun control. This was just a few months before he was diagnosed. They were both just incredibly smart and earnest and accessible. Very, very impressive.
Thanks for the perspective, meta. I like her a lot, but haven’t much real info yet. Count on the Obama Diary ohana to have the details!
Helllloooooooo!!
Aloha!!!
Not sure if this thread was posted before, but it’s a keeper.
Gorgeous photos.
There is a photo of my sister from about the same time period dressed in a similar outfit.
She is tough.
I think there’s fire here
Fire you say, its more like a raging inferno.
I was trying to be nice:) Yes. Inferno
Ha!
Oprah
Michelle R.O.
Maxine W.
Kamala H.
Serena W.
Beyoncé K.
Regina K.
Mae J.
Shonda Rimes
Dr. Gladys Mae West*
Yara Shahidi ( activist; so beautifully woke and becoming even more fierce) *
Time for Pearl Cleage to write another poem to honor this 2nd and 3rd generation of women who stood on the shoulders of the Diamond Legends that she honored in the first poem We Speak Your Names.
* Dr. West, a mathematician, was recently inducted into the Air Force Hall of Fame for her contributions to developing the GPS. Until recently, she was another “hidden figure.” Even now, when you search for information about this invention, the first names and photos you will come to on Google are 3 white males.
* Normally, Yara would be considered to be too young to be in this group, but she is wise an intellectual powerhouse and a force of nature.
No disrespect to women of other races/ethnicities, but my list reflects the women who most directly impact my life and community. Women who had even more bars to go over, under, and around than others.
Who is on your list of most admired and inspiring women?
If you have vision insurance, never never go out of network for products or services, trust me.
New post.
https://theobamadiary.com/2019/01/21/what-are-you-doing-for-others/