Blog #131--Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Was a Third Kind of Person
The holiday designated for the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was celebrated last Monday January 18, 2016 (his actual birthday was January 15). While some businesses remained open, many others, including all government offices, closed out of respect for the former civil rights leader. His intelligence and awareness, coupled with natural leadership skills, helped provide the black population of the United States with rights more equal to their former white overseers.
Many of Dr. King’s speeches are now considered classics, and they are often repeated in schools and on radio programs around the country. I have heard parts of a number of them over the years, and his advanced, far-sighted vision was and remains unique among humans. While his primary goal was to help raise awareness about the plight of black people and help them gain equal rights under the law, his personal awareness continued to expand. Before he was assassinated, he had begun to talk about world issues like economics and politics. And he aided the struggle to end the Vietnam War.
During the holiday Monday, I happened to hear a brief excerpt from a speech Dr. King gave in Detroit at Aretha Franklin’s father's church. One line was of special interest to me. He said the following: “Black supremacy is as dangerous as white supremacy.” It wasn’t enough for him to elevate black citizens to a more prominent and fair role in the United States. His real goal was to elevate the self-awareness of all citizens regardless of race, religion or culture. He was no single-issue politician; he shown a bright light on the entire world, hoping to raise us all into becoming one with our true, spiritual selves as equals.
In my book “It’s a Secret, So Pass It On: a Toolbox For Life,” I talk about a third kind of person. Some people are predominately left-brained and direct, and others are primarily right-brained and indirect. Those with a relatively equal blend of direct and indirect approaches to life have a survival advantage because they can adapt more readily to changes in their environment.
And they are more likely to be conscious a portion of the time, something all people claim for themselves but few actually accomplish. Like I said in the book, I am convinced that consciousness is like bi-focal vision. Depth perception is enhanced when both eyes work together for a common purpose instead of competing with one another. Likewise, conscious awareness is enhanced when both halves of our brain accept and work with one another so we can observe ourselves and others simultaneously as equals.
Most rare of all is the conscious person who is willing to share his or her profound awareness with the general public despite a guaranteed strong negative backlash from those who fear going beyond their own self-imposed limits. In that sense, Dr. King was a true leader. He shared his visions with the world, attracting followers with his eloquence as well as his noble intentions.
If he were alive in 2008, he would have advised black people to vote for the presidential candidate who best represented the needs of the entire United States. Many black people helped elect Barack Obama to become the first black president of the country. It is understandable why they would have voted for any black politician, given their history of slavery and mistreatment. But if Dr. King disagreed with Obama on any issue, he would likely say so. If he didn’t feel Obama was the best candidate, he wouldn’t have voted for him. Likewise, if either or both of Hillary Clinton and Carly Fiorina were to become their party’s presidential candidates for the upcoming 2016 election, Dr. King would encourage women to vote for the best candidate and not ignore troubling issues just to put the first woman in the White House.
Dr. King knew that, under the skin, we are all basically the same person. He realized how easy it would be for blacks, after hundreds of years of oppression, upon gaining power might wish to turn the tables on white people. But inequality works both ways, and Dr. King wanted everyone treated as equals. As a minister, Dr. King practiced the spirituality he preached, and true spirituality requires us to recognize our connections and oneness with all people and all other life forms. His comment about not wanting blacks to act like their white oppressors proved a level of awareness far beyond most people.
Unfortunately, it was likely his consciousness that became his ultimate downfall. As a true leader, he was becoming a threat to the powers that be. Those who reside in the middle of the human spectrum are in balance between their left and right halves. They don’t support the two-dimensional notion of us or them, you’re with us or against us. Free of the limits of two-dimensional thinking, they become enemies both of the left-brained crowd and the right-brained crowd.
He realized his life might be short, as he admitted when he said he might not reach the “promised land” with his listeners. After all, we must be kicked out of hell because of our refusal to engage in behaviors that perpetuate a negative existence. By raising issues the powers that be wanted to keep hidden from the masses, he became a martyr.
Many in the general public still believe the government stance that James Earl Ray was a lone gunman bent on snuffing out Dr. King’s life, and he was convicted of the murder. The concept of a lone gunman is easy to argue and simplifies the legal process of trying and convicting someone. And it helps keep more delicate issues from the public domain.
But on December 8, 1999, a jury in Memphis produced a verdict that concluded Dr. King’s death resulted from a conspiracy between the FBI, CIA, U.S. Army, Memphis police and the Mafia. This trial was the result of a civil lawsuit against Loyd Jowers, owner of a café adjacent to the scene of the shooting. He admitted and was found guilty of being part of the vast conspiracy, but those who were above him in the chain of command were not named or punished. Whether true or not, it was inevitable that someone kill Dr. King. After all, false leaders cannot gain power if all others are conscious and unwilling to allow selfish liars to gain power over them.
Dr. King was special and extremely rare in this world. Chances are, someone like him will not come around for many years to come. A few with his potential are born yearly, but most do not have destinies to become leaders. Those who are are murdered at the first sign of special qualities. False leaders have found this behavior expedient as it eliminates potential threats to their power before they can become popular enough to start mass movements and then end up as martyrs whose messages stand the test of time.
Even without new leaders, Dr. King’s message to the world is still available to those wishing to learn. As he would undoubtedly share with us if still alive, the message is far more important than the messenger.
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