"But it really doesn't matter with me now... because I've been the mountaintop!"

Every year on this date, as we just did a moment ago, I have my children watch some clips from Martin Luther King, Jr. I explain the context of his words to the best of my ability to convey and theirs to understand; interestingly, a discussion that evolves along with their comprehension abilities. My oldest now asks intriguing questions; my youngest still entranced by the power of his magical cadence. But I know even for my little boy, those words will ring in his mind for years to come, jus as they always have in mine.

When we think of “The Speech”, we all immediately go to “I have a dream…”, which is one of the most symbolic and powerful speeches in our nation’s history. But there is another speech of MLK’s that resonates with me even more. Words that give me chills to hear even today, though I’ve listened to the same clip more than a hundred times. Dr. King spoke these words on the evening of April 3, 1968, at the Church of God HQ in Memphis. The following day, he would be assassinated at the Lorraine Motel nearby. He knew. It’s beyond eerie he could have known, but that reality screams through these words. He speaks to it. The tone change at 1:23 in this clip is so poignant it grabs me every time. The twinkle in that man’s eyes revealing the magic inside. I use the term “Unicorn breed” to describe humans that just seem to be a cut above the rest; almost magical creatures that seem to enhance the world around them with their mere presence, finding success and cultivating energy in everything they touch. Those types have a sparkle in their eye that is unmistakable. The face in this video clip defines this concept. Some of the most powerful words I’ve ever heard, from one of the most powerful Americans there has ever been…

“I’ve been to the mountaintop…”

. . .

By the way, check out how CNN treats this day in 2023…

According to John Blake and Calvin Baker, America is still segregated. Because that’s an accurate reflection of the modern US, right?

“He has taught at Yale and Columbia…” Of course he has.

Straight from the CNN piece above:

Steinhorn says he puts his hope in a new generation of young Americans. The Gen-Z generation, those from the late ’90s onward, is the most racially diverse in the nation’s history. He says polls show that they are more open on questions about race, ethnicity and sexual identity than any other American generation.

Ahhh, “sexual identity”, what do you know! I’m surprised he didn’t toss in gender too. What do you think Dr. King’s take would have been on telling 5 year-old children at school that they get to decide whether they are a boy or a girl, or can choose neither and claim “non-binary” and demand everyone call them “they” or “zir”? Calvin and John want you to think MLK would have been all about it! Of course, reality would tell these sycophants a very different story.

Every single article involving race from these ideologues eventually wraps in sexuality and gender identity. Once you recognize that as the stamp it is, the entire puzzle will start making much more sense.