MLK Day, 2009

I dare say this day has taken on much more meaning, much greater consequence this year than all the others.

With the first black president set to be sworn in to office tomorrow, it is hailed as --- and certainly is --- the fulfillment of Dr. King's dream.

Surely, that President-Elect Obama was able to be elected by a sizable majority of the electorate, disproves the myth that America is (still) a racist nation. Certainly, there are racist individuals yet among our citizens. But the country is not racist itself, if it ever was.

As George Will points out, Obama received a higher percentage of the white vote than did either Al Gore or John Kerry in the previous two elections. And Mississippi has more black elected officials than any other state. Clearly, white America can be color-blind in its selection of whom to vote for.

Surely, we can now end the divisive and unconstitutional treatment known as "Affirmative Action". What possible reason could there still be to not judge everyone on merit alone? Isn't this, after all, what Dr. King really marched for? Equal treatment under the law, not preferences and quotas?

Yet, more black Americans voted for Obama (by percentage and by volume) than had voted for the Democratic ticket in recent elections. All too many, it seems, did so for one reason: to elect "one of their own". Elect a man with scant experience to arguably the most important office on earth, based solely on that man's race. A racist vote... just not one in the terms of the word we normally associate it with.

So, maybe Dr. King's dream isn't yet fully realized*. There are still sizable segments of our society that are blatantly racist, that will vote for someone based solely on the color of their skin. But it isn't the segment of society that Dr. King once railed against.

CP

* Many who today praise the work of Dr. King in the Civil Rights struggles of the 1950's and 1960's, likely have not heard or read the full "I have a dream" speech he made on 28 August 1963, and are thus speaking from ignorance. As a public service to those who have not, here is the link. Please note, throughout the speech he talks about equality, not preferences and quotas.