The third Monday in January is the day the United States honors the life and work of Martin Luther King, Jr. It seems to me that the older I get, the more I appreciate him—his steadfastness, his faith, his courage, his humanity. He brought joy to everything he did, even in the face of everything frightened White supremacists threw at him.
I’ve been thinking of King and what he called the “normalcy” he
sought.
In his speech at the end of the Selma to Birmingham march in
March of 1965, here’s how he put it:
“The only
normalcy that we will settle for is the normalcy that recognizes the dignity
and worth of all of God’s children. The only normalcy that we will settle for
is the normalcy that allows judgment to run down like waters, and righteousness
like a mighty stream. The only normalcy that we will settle for is the normalcy
of brotherhood, the normalcy of true peace, the normalcy of justice.”
People of good will are still seeking that normalcy—and running
up against the same crowd who obstructed King more than 50 years ago. But they
are every bit as determined as King, and they bring the same courage, faith, humanity
and joy to the fight.
I was reminded of this by the speech House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries gave following the election of Kevin McCarthy to Speaker.
HOLY SHIT, my man Rep. Hakeem Jeffries actually schooled these fools alphabetically!👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/PFQ18f7vWP
— BrooklynDad_Defiant!☮️ (@mmpadellan) January 7, 2023
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