"Silence is betrayal"

Today, January 15, we celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr Day in the United States.  Reverend King was born on January 15, 1929, and we celebrate MLK, Jr Day on the nearest Monday to his birthday every year (this year, MLK, Jr Day and his birthday actually coincide).  MLK, Jr Day has been an official federal holiday since 1986, and it is fitting that we do so, perhaps this year more than most. 

Reverend King was a Baptist minister and civil rights leader who first came to prominence when he led the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955 (the campaign occurred in response to the arrest of Rosa Parks, an African American woman who refused to give up her seat to a white man).  King organized a number of non-violent protests - his non-violent, civil disobedience (King was reportedly heavily influenced by Mahatma Gandhi and the American philosopher, Henry David Thoreau).  Reverend King went on to win the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize and was assassinated on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee.

Most people in the United States know of Reverend King as a civil rights leader - his "I have a dream" speech (watch the speech here) is one of the most well known speeches by any American leader.  What is less well known was Reverend King's activism against the Vietnam War during the final years of his life.  Exactly one year before he was assassinated, he delivered a speech at the Riverside Baptist Church in New York City on April 4, 1967 - it is called the "Beyond Vietnam" speech.  In his opening remarks, he cites a line from the Executive Committee of the Clergy and Laymen Concerned About Vietnam, a group of ministers and other leaders who were against the American involvement in Southeast Asia - "A time comes when silence is betrayal."

"A time comes when silence is betrayal."  It is a statement of purpose and a call to action, even for us today.  I see our government leaders today speaking out against some of the things that our current President has said, both in public and private.  Unfortunately, some of these leaders choose to speak out only when it is popular to do so, i.e. only when the overwhelming majority of the public supports them.  At other times, when siding with the President suits their needs, they choose to look the other way.  They choose to be silent.

There are times when leaders should not be silent.  There are times when leaders need to go against politics and take a stand for what is right and what is just.  Too many leaders are silent when we need them to be the leaders the most.  And through their silence, they betray their constituents.  They betray all of us.

Today, I will remember Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr for all of the great things he did in his life - not just for African Americans, but for each and every one of us.  He was a great man.  He was a great leader.  And he was not silent.