KALAMAZOO — Martin Luther King Jr. is remembered in 2012 as a hero, but toward the end of his life the civil rights leader certainly was not treated as one, an award-winning author told a crowd in Kalamazoo on Sunday.
”Dr. King was seen as a pest, out of step with society. In the twentieth century he was seen as a pariah,” Michael Eric Dyson told hundreds of people who filled Western Michigan University’s Miller Auditorium for a celebration of King’s life.
Dyson, an ordained minister who teaches sociology at Georgetown University, was keynote speaker for an event titled, “Martin Luther King Jr. and African American Leadership in the 21st Century.”
The Michigan native who now lives in Washington, D.C. hosts a radio show and often appears on National Public Radio, CNN and MSNBC. He has written numerous books about prominent black figures such as King, Malcolm X and Marvin Gaye. In 2008 on the 40th anniversary of King’s assassination he released his latest book, “April 4, 1968: Martin Luther King Jr.’s Death and How it Changed America.”
Dyson spoke Sunday of the struggles King faced in his journey toward promoting integration and peace. He credited society for the progress on race made since King’s time, but said much remains to be done.
“Though we know that race cannot be reductively boiled down to whiteness and blackness, we focus our attention of who we are on pigment,” he said.
Dyson said that, with the political landscape, even a black president is unable to speak out to solve the “race problem.”
”Mr. Obama, stop going to black communities and talking about black problems,” he said. “Talk to the other side. Open their eyes.”
In keeping with the title of the program, Dyson spoke about leadership in the 21st century, mentioning black leaders including Bill Cosby, Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson.
”The same things they say now about Sharpton and Jackson, they said about King. I’m not saying they’re the same person .... There (are) some similarities,” said Dyson.
Dyson said that although many have worked hard to follow in Dr. King’s footsteps, not nearly enough have had the strength to follow through with their fight when the going gets tough.
”You can’t just quote Martin Luther King. You have to live his courage,” said Dyson. “Be brave. If you’re gonna use King’s words, use King’s ways.”
Posted By: Siebra Muhammad
Wednesday, January 18th 2012 at 12:50PM
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