REMINDER: MLK would have been 86 years old today. 1968 WAS NOT THAT LONG AGO. Yes, it is important to acknowledge his legacy and dream; and his words of non-violence and peace are inspiring. It is also true that the Civil Rights legislation and movements of the 1960s brought social and legal changes. HOWEVER, we MUST not forget about the existing and prevailing systems of inequality and oppression that the 1960s sought to confront. We must have conversations about race and racism. Here is a quote that I think helps explain how these systems play out: “Race is a fundamental organizing principle of social stratification. It has influenced the definition of rights and privileges, the distribution of resources, and the ideologies and practices of subordination and oppression. The concept of race as a marker of difference has perpetuated all forms of social relations. It is a template for the processes of marginalization that continue to shape social structures as well as collective and individual psyches. -Omi & Winant, Racial Formation in the U.S. (2014) So, dear friends, keep carrying out legacies and keep living the dream, but remember, we have not made it to the mountaintop.
Posted on: Tue, 20 Jan 2015 02:17:11 +0000
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