Celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr

The problem with celebrating the birthday of a great figure such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is that the celebration can overshadow the meaning of that person's life. Take Christmas, for example. Of the millions of people who recently exchanged gifts, decorated their homes, sent out Christmas cards or attended Christmas parties, how many would actually identify as "Christian" or even be familiar with Jesus' core teachings?

Similarly, of all those federal employees, private employees and students who get a day off in honor of Dr. King's birthday, how many appreciate all that he contributed to the Civil Rights Movement? How many know that his belief in non-violent civil disobedience was shaped both by his Christian faith and by the non-violent activism of Mahatma Gandhi (which, in turn, was influenced by the gospels)? Or that the vision he articulated in his "I Have a Dream" speech (1963) was of a vision for an America in which all people could live in harmony?

How many are aware of the hate mail and death threats that he and his fellow activists received on account of their leadership? That the FBI labeled this speech as "demagogic" and marked Dr. King as "the most dangerous Negro of the future in this Nation from the standpoint of communism, the Negro and national security."

This Monday is a national holiday, but it is more than a day for relaxation. Rather, we need to remember the ultimate price that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. paid for his activism, as well as the heroism of all those who worked towards establishing a foundation of freedom and equality. Many of those great leaders — Bayard Rustin, Rosa Parks, and John Lewis, for example — are no longer with us, but the best way we can honor them is to remember our debt of gratitude and safeguard their legacy.