In the Words of a
**Date:** 01-21-25
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This year, Martin Luther King Day and the inauguration of Donald Trump occupied the same space on the calendar and in our collective consciousness. The irony is jarring.
On Sunday, it was Betsy’s and my great joy to be participants in a warm embrace of community. And boy, did it feel good… It was a full house at the UU for the celebration of Dr. King, and I swear that his spirit filled the place.
More than that. I believe that there was a shared bond among those in attendance that in this moment, with the “fierce urgency of now” we stand together for what’s right. And with eyes wide open for what may come.
And it will. It will come.
It will be abetted by those who see the advantage in marginalization, false information, and accusation. Those who would make it easy to blame and punish others, to strip away rights and worse. It’s a formula that has lots of precedent. It’s not new, and we should be prepared for its patterns as they unfold.
The crescendo of Sunday’s service arrived in Andrew Puritz’ channeling of Martin Luther King’s well known, electrifying rally of thousands on the mall. Not a mimicry of Dr. King’s delivery, but a deeply felt presentation of those words in a voice that delivered the speech as if for the first time.
Of course, the speech has its famous dream text, but before it settles into that, it weaves through several other layers and themes. Among them the imperative to act now. Delay isn’t acceptable. When we see injustice, when we hear the lies and see their consequence, and when we see the rights of our neighbors being threatened, we must act. Each of us we will determine how. But we can’t sit idle, and complicit.
In his speech, Dr. King cautions against “the tranquilizing drug of gradualism.” We have already seen the slow-motion gnawing away of our institutions and our trust in government. We’ve also seen an increasing arc in the acceptance of rudeness, bigotry, and even threats and vilification.
In his speech, Dr. King calls our attention to what should be our basic expectation, that each of us should be treated with the respect that we deserve. We are all created equal. It’s our duty as citizens and human beings to ensure that the promises of our constitution are guaranteed to everyone.
During the ceremony we had occasion to join arms in song and I was struck by the sincerity and the integrity of our community. We will need that in these days to come. There have already been so many challenges to our social fabric. We see them in the increasing coarseness of dialogue and the willingness to upend our norms, and to defend and share conspiracies that are barely tethered to fact.
But, like so many – and aided by the strength of their partnership – I am committed to the principles of Dr King, and to ensuring that this city remains a beacon to all who seek the opportunity to pursue their American Dream.
Oneonta is a city that aspires to embody King’s vision of “freedom’s ring.” Where the acceptance and support of one another, regardless of race, creed, or orientation is a given. And where we are ever vigilant against threats as they come and poised to act individually and collectively to defend the rights of all.
The pursuit, of life, liberty, and the American dream is not the exclusive right of an oligarchy in-the-making, but of every single one of us.
Don’t believe the calendar. Every day is Martin Luther King Day.
