It’s Martin Luther King day. Perhaps King’s best contribution? Aside from standing up to racism, of course. The idea of peaceful protest; of non-violence.
Non-violence is not the same as pacifism. Pacifism is when you’re a doormat. Pacifism is when you refuse to defend yourself against people who will initiate violence against you.
Non-violence is a form of passive resistance. It’s a form of going on strike. When you’re in the right, it’s a way of conveying, “I’m not going to pretend your abuse is tolerable when we both know it isn’t. The charade is over”. King’s leadership in the use of peaceful protest is legendary, and deserves to be.
Martin Luther King is a hero of the left. Yet today’s left has nothing whatsoever to do with non-violence. Today’s left is about forcible seizure — of wealth, guns and even the right to free speech (via control of the Internet, including social media). Medicare for all is not a non-violent option — it’s mandatory. Comply, or it’s prison. Ditto for gun confiscation. Ditto for “hate speech” laws. Agree with the left, or face the consequences. Comply … or you’re shamed (at best) and sanctioned or jailed (at worst).
When Martin Luther King spoke of having a dream, was his dream for everyone to be free? Or for everyone to live with equal fear under the terror of a government gun? Did King seek to inspire confidence and a demand for equality under the law for black people — or for hatred against white people?
Is that what idealism is all about? Force? Compulsion? The despair of mindless conformity? And the brutality of a Communist gulag, which a leading contender for the Democratic nomination for President doesn’t think is such a bad idea?
I wonder if today’s snowflake leftists rushing to support all things coercively socialist have any clue what non-violence really means. And I wonder if Martin Luther King would support their efforts to enslave Americans as much as they assume he would.
Follow Dr. Hurd on Facebook. Search under “Michael Hurd” (Rehoboth Beach DE). Get up-to-the-minute postings, recommended articles and links, and engage in back-and-forth discussion with Dr. Hurd on topics of interest. Also follow Dr. Hurd on Twitter at @MichaelJHurd1, and see drmichaelhurd on Instagram.