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| January 10, 2007 Red Alert by Soren Wuerth Martin King, Jr., Redux
“Let us be dissatisfied until America will no longer have high blood pressure of creeds and an anemia of deeds.”
~ Martin Luther King, Jr., 1967
It was my friend Carl who reminded me about the
forthcoming MLK Day. Using the more inclusive term “Civil Rights
Day,” he suggested taking to streets to promote Alaska Native
issues on Monday.A few years ago, we trod through deep snow to rally at the MLK monument on the Park Strip, only to find it vandalized. The culprits responsible unwittingly supplied the message for cameramen that racism still infects our largest town. In a less-acclaimed demonstration last year, I marched with Cu’pik students through our rural school singing “We Shall Overcome” (see Red Alert, 1/20/06). Some teachers didn’t join the raucous chorus, keeping their students captive in their classrooms. Oh well. I wrote back to Carl urging him to deploy the peace and human rights troops in the Elizabeth Peratrovich Park downtown, then march to King’s bust for a quiet vigil. I encouraged him to use the occasion to unveil his beautiful dream for downtown Anchorage. Have you heard it? Carl’s Bolivarian concept of a complex on 10th Avenue “as an alternative downtown gathering place that doesn't cost anything,” would include such rural-friendly amenities as a sweat lodge, community center, and music and art studios. Heck, good old Carl could get all that in more with just an hour’s worth of Iraq War funding ($10 million). In government, there’s no such thing as a “money problem,” instead we suffer from money allocation problems. People like Carl are progressing toward King’s idea of “the beloved community” while pushing aside the namby-pamby interpretation the Anchorage Daily News provides in its annual diluted coverage—a photo of a congregation, an abridged version of the “I Have a Dream” speech. In Truthout, Writer Geov Parrish gave an accurate description of what the holiday has become: “Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., nonviolent martyr to reconciliation and justice, has become a Hallmark Card, a warm, fuzzy, feel-good invocation of neighborliness, a file photo for sneakers or soda commercials, a reprieve for post-holiday shoppers, an excuse for a three-day weekend, a cardboard cutout used for photo ops by dissembling Cabinet members and ungrateful Supreme Court justices. Be sure to check out the Three-Day-Only White Sale at Wal-Mart. Always lower prices. Always. “The saddest loss in the modern narrative of Dr. King's career is the story of who he was: a man without wealth, without elected office, who managed as a single individual to change the world simply through the strength of his moral convictions. His power came from his faith, and his willingness to act on what he knew to be right. That story could inspire many millions to similar action - if only it were told. We could each be Dr. King.” Join Carl in the streets on Monday. And make Martin proud. Soren Wuerth is perhaps Alaska's best known community activist, and is the winner of the Alaska Press Club's 2006 'Best Columnist' award. He resides in an undisclosed location in rural Alaska and can be reached at soren@insurgent49.com. 'Red Alert' appears on insurgent49.com every Wednesday. |
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January 3, 2007 December 27, 2006 December 20, 2006 December 13, 2006 December 6, 2006 November 29, 2006 November 21, 2006 November 10, 2006 November 3, 2006 October 27, 2006 October 20, 2006 October 13, 2006 October 6, 2006 September 29, 2006 September 22, 2006 September 15, 2006 September 8, 2006 September 1, 2006 August 25, 2006 August 18, 2006 August 11, 2006 August 4, 2006 July 28, 2006 July 21, 2006 July 14, 2006 June 30, 2006 June 23, 2006 June 16, 2006 June 9, 2006 June 2, 2006 May 26, 2006 May 12, 2006 May 5, 2006 April 28, 2006 April 21, 2006 April 14, 2006 April 7, 2006 March 31, 2006 March 24, 2006 March 17, 2006 March 3, 2006 February 24, 2006 February 17, 2006 February 10, 2006 February 3, 2006 January 27, 2006 January 20, 2006 January 13, 2006 January 6, 2006 December 30, 2005 December 23, 2005 December 16, 2005 December 10, 2005 December 2, 2005 November 25, 2005 November 18, 2005 November 11, 2005 November 4, 2005 October 28, 2005 October 21, 2005 October 14, 2005 October 7, 2005 September 30, 2005 September 23, 2005 September 16, 2005 September 9, 2005 September 2, 2005 August 26, 2005 August 19, 2005 August 12, 2005 August 5, 2005 July 29, 2005 July 22, 2005 July 15, 2005 July 8, 2005 July 1, 2005 June 24, 2005 June 17, 2005 June 10, 2005 June 3, 2005 May 27, 2005 May 20, 2005 May 13, 2005 May 6, 2005 April 29, 2005 April 21, 2005 |
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