Martin Luther King and his place in our time

Martin Luther King was the outstanding people’s leader of the 20th century. He left us an unparalleled legacy. Nobody combined a liberating and humane vision, strategic insight, and practical know-how as well as he did at the time or since.

Below is King’s  “I Have a Dream” speech at the historic march in Washington in 1963. It has lost none of its resonance and power. Indeed, in the confrontations that will surely come – and come soon – this speech as well as his other speeches should inspire and inform everything we say and do. Turning the tables on Trump and his right wing gang will take, for sure, the practical actions of a diverse coalition on the streets, in legislative halls, and at the ballot box. But it also requires a compelling, humane, and deeply democratic vision that appeals to people across the political divides and contrasts with Trump’s mean spirited and hateful rhetoric.  And no one can assist us more in this regard than MLK.