Recognizing

This is what Martin Luther King, Jr. said in May, 1967, in an address to the Southern Christian Leadership Conference:

We must recognize that we can’t solve our problem now until there is a radical redistribution of economic and political power… this means a revolution of values and other things. We must see now that the evils of racism, economic exploitation and militarism are all tied together… you can’t really get rid of one without getting rid of the others… the whole structure of American life must be changed. America is a hypocritical nation and [we] must put [our] own house in order.”

While politicians seem to like to invoke Dr. King's name,  I have heard only one presidential candidate talking about an approach to change that is anything close to this. The memory of MLK has been watered down and his power neutered as his narrative has been co-opted. He believed in the power of love, yes; he was also a radical who believed that radical change - political, economic, and social change- was necessary for justice to prevail in America.  He fought the Establishment and spoke truth to power: he stood up against racial injustice, he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the working class, he demonstrated against the war. His fight was real and it goes on today.

Let's not forget that.