By Craig Johnson
This weekend marks the 88th anniversary of the birth of the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (January 15, 1929). It also marks the 119th anniversary of the famous letter, “J’accuse!” It was written by influential French writer, Emile Zola, and published in the French newspaper, L’Aurore, on January 13, 1898.
Zola wrote the open letter to Felix Faure, President of France. “J’accuse” is French for “I accuse”. Zola accused President Faure of antisemitism in the unfair charging and convicting of French Army staff officer Alfed Dreyfus. The charge was espionage, which carried a sentence of life in prison on the infamous South American penal colony, Devil’s Island. Since the letter’s publication, even in English speaking nations, “J’accuse!” has become synonymous with expressing outrage and accusation against the powerful.
My pronouncement of “J’accuse” is against the many “poverty pimp politicians” and “pulpit pimp preachers” who this weekend will lionize Dr. King with their lips while their actions are counter to all that Dr. King stood for.
These speakers will wax eloquently about the greatness of Dr. King and of their great love for him. But, in Dr. King’s April 9, 1967 speech in Chicago, titled “The Three Dimensions of a Complete Life”, he spoke of the first dimension being a concern for one’s own welfare that could turn from a healthy self-interest to an ugly selfishness. A love of others only when others proved to have a utilitarian purpose. Let’s examine some of the positions several prominent “Negro leaders” of today espouse and determine if they are “using” the King legacy or are truly in synch with Dr. King’s vision.
“I accuse” these people of cynically using Dr. King, and the cause he fought for his entire life, to cement themselves in power at the expense of other Americans, especially (but not only) Black Americans.
There’s an old saying, “Conquerors divide; but leaders unite.” Dr. King sought to bring Americans together. He often cited Paul in Galatians 3:28, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus”. But, all we hear from Obama, Jackson, Sharpton, Farrakhan, and other Negro leaders is “hyphenated-Americanism,” and “whitey is greedy, racist, sexist, and a devil.” And, when they ran out of skin tones to hyphenate over, they invented a dozen ways to hyphenate over sexuality.
Dr. King spoke eloquently in his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, declaring:
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
“I accuse” these poverty pimps of turning every critique of Obama into a false charge that it is not about character, but about skin color. I accuse them of making college admission not about character (grades) but about skin color. I accuse them of denying advancement and learning to inner city Blacks because every institution that seeks to teach them discipline and character, i.e., the family, the church, schools, and coaches, has had governmental pressure applied to forsake character in favor of skin color; and the newest dividing line, change your sexual identity.
Pity the child, of any race, who has to be taught by these government monsters, without a strong father and mother, who are anchored in truth. The men who have replaced Dr. King will certainly not lead them in the ways of righteousness. Dr. King would be appalled at the teaching and government force used to promote a dozen different types of homosexuality, or give your daughter an abortion, or give your son a sex change – without parental notification. But not Obama, not Sharpton, not Jackson (let’s give Farrakhan credit for holding out on that one).
But, perhaps worst of all is the total absence of any prominent Democrat leader (black or white) giving any semblance of even a mention to today’s Blacks, of one of the key attributes that Dr. King, and men of his era always taught — self-discipline. Again, from “I Have A Dream”:
But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.
In today’s world, where the Oxford Dictionary recently announced that the 2016 “word of the year” was “post-truth”; the type of truth that Dr. King taught has no place with these race hustlers. Again, “I accuse!” Wrongful deeds are not corrected but excused. The cup of bitterness and hatred is not frowned upon but encouraged. Dignity and discipline? “Why you must be a Republican! Get outta here!” And, as for meeting physical force with soul force, today it is turned around. The police officers, school teachers, job providers, etc., who bring “soul force” to the equation are increasingly being met with physical force from thugs who are juiced up on the hatred being spewed by these wicked preachers and politicians, who have 25% of Black America on a literal and spiritual plantation. Teacher beatings and police officer assassinations have skyrocketed and increasing or record breaking murder rates are in many of our major cities. Whenever a major incident occurs, there is no balm put on the wounds, the way Dr. King would attempt to do; but only salt.
You won’t hear very much talk like this as the usual suspects will misappropriate Dr. King, and go on their annual hate-fest, as though all of America is run by Democrat Lester Maddox, circa 1950. And the 10,000 young black men that Farrakhan asked to be ready to give their lives; many of them have a very big chip on their shoulders, and no active father to protect them from Obama and company whispering hatefulness in their young ears.
I pray that the true spirit of Dr. King: loving, compassionate, wise, thoughtful, disciplined, and determined; is still resonate enough to shine in our hearts in spite of who will be delivering most of the speeches.
Craig Johnson can be heard on “The REALLY, Real, Deal, with Brother Craig The Hatchet Man,” Saturdays from 10am to 12pm, EST., at www.820theanswer.com. Brother Craig’s Dr. King broadcast from Saturday, January 14, 2017 can be heard by following or pasting this link into your browser, DROPBOX LINK. For media inquiries or speaker engagements, contact Kimberly@agencyforthearts.com.
First Published in the Virginia Free Citizen