Martin Luther King

Today the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Justice is commemorated in Washington. Remember that Dr. King was among other things, a true believer in jobs with dignity and decent pay to bridge the distances between the races. One last thing, this March was darn near revolutionary at the time.

One of the good things about getting older is that a person has memories of events that helped shape their times. Even if a person is not directly involved there are memories of whatever involvement they had, even if it is to remember their reaction on hearing the news.

For me, it was the week before the start of school. I would be heading into high school. As a just turned teen, my awareness of world events was just getting honed. Much of my perspective was shaped by the Catholic Church and its doctrine on social justice. It was a time when the Church was evolving fast under Pope John 23 who had just died.

So on that Wednesday afternoon (note the calendar is the same as this year’s) with summer very near its end, I took a spot in front of the old black and white TV for what I understood at the time would be one of the most historical events of possibly a lifetime.

Coverage was on all 3 networks that day, so there was nothing else to watch and it started early in the morning. It was a time when news was taken quite seriously and the key was that the news be factual at a minimum. There was no happy chatter or pretty, empty headed news talkers. Throughout the day all events were handled with a very somber seriousness. For one thing, no one had any idea what would happen. Some had predicted riots would break out, other predictions ran the gamut between that and nothing happening. One thing was for sure, the crowds kept coming and coming in numbers no one had expected.

I do remember that like many watchers of events, I was waiting and hoping for something to happen. But the whole march unfolded quietly and uneventfully. As the day moved to conclusion, there seemed to be some occasional confusion but nothing that signaled any riot or major disturbance.

When Martin Luther King got up to speak, I was somewhat disappointed. Nothing had really happened.  To a 13 year old boy, the King speech was not inspiring that day. The day seemed to end in a fizzle as did the summer. The march participants went home peaceably. What I did not realize then was that this was really an event to mark a beginning, not just an event that was defined within its singular time period. As I grew older, going through the phases of my life this is one of several events I would mull over in my mind time and again.

In the ebb and flow of history that summer had a lot of flow to it. Much happened. Now I see it as the summer that gave early traction to much of what became the 60s. But on that day in a situation where it seemed like a powder keg was about ready to blow, Martin Luther King forced us to pay attention and listen. And then he made a speech that has transcended time.

As racism raises its ugly face in America once again, the timeliness of remembering that day seems a much needed break to help us remember just what America truly means. This anniversary also comes at a time when we are reminded that we can never rest on our laurels. As the old saying goes, the price of liberty is vigilance.