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Tom, one of our favorite holidays is coming up… Martin Luther King Day is this Monday, January 16th…     

…and with all the talk about the importance of social networking these days, I’ve been thinking if he were alive today, would Dr. King be on Facebook? Imagine him at home in the ATL, sitting in front of a computer with loosened tie uploading pictures of himself, Mrs. King and their children on his wall, and posting videos of marches and excerpts of his favorite speeches for Facebook friends?

How about Twitter? What would he tweet? And given his propensity for lengthy speeches, would he have started a global movement to overturn Twitter’s original 140-character restriction?

Of course, I’m sure he would have appeared on the TJMS to discuss the issues of the day… but afterwards, if someone said something about him he didn’t like, would he text oh-oh-oh to let us know?

Maybe not… but all of this speculation does raise a more profound question… Could Dr. King’s message actually be delivered effectively in our technology-obsessed age? Or would it be spliced, chopped and remixed into sound bites, devoid of its original substance and meaning?

What we do know is that Dr. King’s message and legacy are still affecting people and movements around the world… We can look at the recent examples in several Arab nations where King’s words were trumpeted during popular uprisings or where We Shall Overcome, the song most associated with him, was played in the streets…

That said, it could certainly be argued that Dr. King’s words and legacy are being used these days in more superficial ways that do not necessarily capture the essence of his life or his agenda… we heard talk about this in the debates surrounding the recent dedication of the King Memorial in DC…

So would Dr. King have been encouraged by the explosion of technology, social networking and its use in current movements on the world stage, or would he be deeply concerned about the loss of time for real reflection and critical thinking, and at how impersonal, shallow, and mechanical communication has become?

Well, I obviously am not sure about the answers to these questions, but it is certainly something to think about… In fact, because of modern technology, we can do more than think about it… Text us here at 64-64-64 (oh-oh-oh) to tell us what issues in particular you think Dr. King, if he were alive, would be texting about today…

What we do know for sure is that Dr. King was a deep and critical thinker… and his thinking, combined with his moral obligation to God and humanity, compelled him to speak out and act upon his thoughts and principles…

…and while he may well have found a way to communicate the essence of his message to the world’s masses even with today’s shorter attention spans, Twitter character limits, and real-time technologies, I think Dr. King, in his unique and eloquent way, would have certainly reminded us of our human capacity for – and responsibility to engage in– careful and critical thought, and substantial, meaningful communication…

I think he would have pushed us to resist technologies that encourage quick sound bites and the splicing and tweeting of complex ideas – I think he would have challenged us to think deeply.  And he would have pushed us to really engage with one another in thoughtful, difficult, and often lengthy, conversations and debates… in the quest for just and lasting solutions…

As always, his words say it best:

“Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think.”

Until Next Time, this is Stephanie in Love and Hope.

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As you guys know, Last week my commentary focused on Haiti, and I want to begin by asking that we extend our love and support to the Haitian people as that country is recovering, yet again, from a natural disaster. Haiti’s tragedy comes right before Dr. Martin Luther King’s actual birthday, tomorrow January 15th, even though we celebrate the official holiday this Monday, the 19th…

Tom, I am so pleased that you’ll be in Haiti tomorrow, I know that we’ll all be listening.  We’ll also tune in on Monday as you host the MSNBC Townhall on Race.  I am soooo happy that you’re getting this important conversation started.…and I’ll be speaking this Monday morning to the MLK Support Group of South East Texas at the Bob Bowers Civic Center in Port Arthur Texas in celebration of the holiday…So if you’re in the area, stop in and see me… So, what would Dr. King say about all those suffering souls in Haiti?  First, he would encourage us to pray, pray, and pray even more.  Second, Dr. King might use this as an occasion for the country to re-examine its priorities.  Dr. King might remind us of the old metaphor used in macroeconomic theory: ‘Guns vs. Butter.’

We’ve all heard this in one form or another, but here’s how it works. The ‘Guns vs. Butter’ economic model teaches us about the relationship between investment in the military versus investment in goods and services to civilians. While it’s intended to be an over-simplification of national spending, the ‘Guns vs. Butter’ model teaches us that the more guns we buy, the less butter we have to feed the hungry. So countries have to make a choice.  Do we invest in guns, or do we invest in butter.

When catastrophic disasters occur, like the one in Haiti, the United States of America should be first in line to pour as many resources as needed to come to the aide of suffering people. But, as a country, we’re broke.   We’re broke because we are fighting two wars – still – with no real end in sight.  We’re broke because we have failed to invest in working class people, the backbone of our country.  We’re broke because we’ve chosen to buy guns, guns, and more guns, and little butter.  So, what would Dr. King say today?

Today, I think Dr. King would be rallying us on behalf of the poor and the disenfranchised, those hit hardest by our current economic hardship –disproportionately of color – who have lost homes, are struggling to feed children, or are lining the streets, the shelters and the soup kitchens of our country…

Today, Dr. King would be organizing on behalf of the uninsured and underinsured – disproportionately of color—who can’t afford much-needed prescriptions, who risk sharing medications with those unable to purchase them, or who are turned away from the emergency rooms in our country

Today, Dr. King would denounce America’s engagement in the international conflicts fought disproportionately by people of color in both Iraq AND Afghanistan, conflicts largely driven by corporate interests and a still-active military industrial complex…

Today, Dr. King would say that the country has a duty – indeed, a moral obligation – to provide relief to the thousands of families both here and in Haiti, who have lost people and who are affected by this earthquake.

Today, Dr. King would say that we should ‘study war no more’ and focus on people, suffering people, hungry people, displaced people, sick people, homeless people . . . .

…and today, here in 2010, as he did 50 years ago, I think Dr. King would be a fearless advocate and activist with his incredible brand of Love and Hope to inspire us — with the power of faith, the spirit of perseverance, and the fire of righteousness…

So today, as we celebrate King on what would be his 81st birthday, let us remember that his work is not done, and that Dr. King himself –in his soul-stirring voice– would remind us that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”

Until next time, this is Stephanie in Love and Hope.



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