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kevin stitt
'Don't Just Quote Him': US Agencies, Politicians Under Fire on MLK Day
"It's that day of the year where people who don't know anything about MLK, and would hate him if he were alive today, post the one or two MLK quotes they know."
Jan 15, 2024
U.S. politicians, agencies, and departments provoked intense criticism on Monday—Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the United States—for sharing select quotes from the civil rights icon while ignoring his messages about important issues including militarism, poverty, and racism.
King—who was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee—would have celebrated his 95th birthday on Monday.
His daughter, Bernice King,
wrote on social media Sunday: "Dear politicians/political influencers: When you evoke my father this #MLKDay, remember that he was resolute about eradicating racism, poverty, and militarism. And about corrective justice work. Don't just quote him. Encourage and enact policies that reflect his teachings."
With that call, MLK Jr.'s daughter shared a video clip of her father speaking out against the Vietnam War.
The Pentagon was among the departments that tried to honor King on social media, claiming that "his dream of equality resonates in our commitment to diversity, inclusion, and justice. Together, we strive for a nation that embraces unity and progress."
The U.S. Department of Justice—whose agencies include the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)—also joined in on the federal holiday, sharing a related speech U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland delivered last week.
The FBI also continued to ignore annual calls to "sit this one out," given its history of spying on King and trying to convince the civil rights leader to kill himself.
Democratic President Joe Biden, who is seeing reelection this year, faced criticism after saying: "Today, we reflect on the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and recommit to honoring his vision. It's up to us to march forward choosing democracy over autocracy and a 'Beloved Community' over chaos—to take up Dr. King's mantle and make his dream a reality."
Al Jazeera journalist Rami Ayari was among the critics who responded to Biden by highlighting U.S. support for Israel, including its devastating war on Gaza, which has killed over 24,000 Palestinians and triggered mounting allegations of genocide.
"Consider the words of MLK Jr. on apartheid in South Africa while the U.S. funds and enables Israeli apartheid: 'In South Africa today, all opposition to white supremacy is condemned as communism, and in its name, due process is destroyed. A medieval segregation is organized with 20th-century efficiency and drive. A sophisticated form of slavery is imposed by a minority upon a majority which is kept in grinding poverty. The dignity of human personality is defiled; and world opinion is arrogantly defied,'" said Ayari. "And world opinion is arrogantly defied... Sound familiar?"
Far-right U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) also sparked backlash for selectively quoting King online.
Other congressional leaders under fire for their MLK-related posts include Reps. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) and Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.).
@RepAndyBiggsAZ Well... \n\n-You tried to overturn a presidential election. \n-You wanted to undermine our nation's founding document. \n-Your party works hard to keep white supremacists happy.\n-You repeat baseless conspiracy theories.\n-You want to help the wealthy and connected while removing help\xe2\x80\xa6— (@)
Meanwhile, progressive U.S. Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.) suggested Monday that considering the significant power of Congress and the executive branch, they should not merely pay "lip service to the ideals of King and eradication of the three evils he spoke of—poverty, militarism, and racism."
"When politicians cite MLK quotes while pursuing policies that target Black [people] at home and abroad, it reads as performative," said the Black congresswoman. "After the end of affirmative action, unaddressed police violence, families struggling to make ends meet, and escalating war, we have work to do."
"We are in the midst of humanitarian crises in Sudan and the [Democratic Republic of Congo]. Ones that our weapons are directly responsible for in Palestine and Yemen. Claiming MLK's legacy while contributing to the suffering of people of color abroad is shameful," Lee continued. "It's long past time for an honest accounting of Dr. King's legacy, and a recommitment to fight for the freedom from poverty, from white supremacy, and from excessive militarism—whether it's the police in our communities or the conflicts we engage in abroad."
Sanitizing Dr. King's legacy is a deliberate act. It erases what he fought for \xe2\x80\x94 racial and economic equality \xe2\x80\x94 and obscures the U.S. government's campaign to destroy him and undermine the civil-rights movement.\n\nJoseph Torres writes as we honor #MLK: https://t.co/KZYWUD1YuL— (@)
State leaders also elicited passionate responses to their online messaging about King.
Tennessee Rep. Justin Jones (D-52) is one of two young Black men whom GOP state House members expelled last year—though voters sent him and Rep. Justin Pearson (D-86) back to the chamber in special elections.
After the Tennessee House Republican Caucus shared a post about the civil rights leader, Jones called out the hypocrisy but also urged his GOP colleagues to "spend more time studying the work of Dr. King."
In response to Republican Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt's MLK post, Aaron Baker, who teaches social studies at a public school, said that "it is my job as a teacher to develop the critical skills in students sufficient to [recognize] that this is a gross reimagining of history and a pernicious abuse of political power."
Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones noted that Stitt has issued an executive order banning diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs at agencies and public universities as well as signed a bill restricting educational instruction on race, which led to his being ousted by the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission.
GOP Texas Gov. Greg Abbott was also slammed for his post about King, with critics pointing to conditions and policies under the far-right governor's reign, from book bans to immigration-related comments and actions.
"A reminder that Abbott's rhetoric was cited in the El Paso massacre shooter's manifesto found after he brutally murdered over 20 people in an act of white nationalist violence," said Ari Sawyer, a U.S. border researcher at Human Rights Watch. "Despite apologizing at the time, Abbott has since, in word and deed, perpetuated that racist violence."
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Rights Groups Challenge 'Unconstitutional' Religious Charter School in Oklahoma
"It's hard to think of a clearer violation of the religious freedom of Oklahoma taxpayers and public-school families than the state establishing the nation's first religious public charter school," said one group within minutes of a state board approving the school's application.
Jun 06, 2023
Within minutes of a state charter school board in Oklahoma approving a plan on Monday to open what would be the first religious charter school in the United States, advocates for the nation's bedrock laws separating church and state announced plans to file a legal challenge against the proposal.
Allowing the Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and Diocese of Tulsa to open a taxpayer-funded virtual charter school in which religious education would be a key part of the curriculum would mark "a sea change for American democracy," said Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
Going against the advice of its own legal counsel and disregarding extensive testimony and legal analysis from Americans United regarding why the creation of the school would violate the U.S. Constitution, the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board voted 3-2 to allow the religious groups to open St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School.
The school would be entirely government-funded, but like other charter schools—which have been criticized by public education advocates—it would be independently managed, in this case by the Catholic archdiocese and diocese.
"It's hard to think of a clearer violation of the religious freedom of Oklahoma taxpayers and public-school families than the state establishing the nation's first religious public charter school," said Laser. "No public school family should fear that their child will be required by charter schools to take theology classes or be expelled for failing to conform to religious doctrines. And the government should never force anyone to fund religious education."
"In a country built on the principle of separation of church and state, public schools must never be allowed to become Sunday schools," she added.
The ACLU said it would join Americans United in challenging the plan.
\u201cWe, @americansunited, and our partners are planning legal action to stop this unconstitutional plan.\n\nOur public schools must be free from religious indoctrination and open to all students.\u201d— ACLU (@ACLU) 1685998053
Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt applauded the decision of the board—which is made up of his appointees—but state Attorney General Gentner Drummond, also a Republican, said it was "extremely disappointing that board members violated their oath in order to fund religious schools with our tax dollars."
The U.S. Supreme Court has handed down two rulings in recent years signaling that its right-wing majority could rule in favor of the religious charter school if a case reaches the high court. Last year the court ruled 6-3 that the state of Maine was not permitted to exclude religious schools from a state tuition program, and in 2020 it ruled 5-4 that states must allow private schools to participate in state scholarships.
"Not long ago, this would have been [dead on arrival]" at the Supreme Court, said Los Angeles Times legal affairs columnist Harry Litman. "But they're banking on the Supreme Court to break down the wall between church and state."
The Oklahoma Rural Schools Coalition called the board's decision "a loss for American values, the rule of law, and our Oklahoma Constitution."
"Three unelected voices in the state of Oklahoma have put the separation of church and state in peril for the entire nation," said the group. "Oklahoma's public schools are among the lowest funded in the nation. We cannot afford to divert dollars to unconstitutional religious schools. Public education dollars must be protected for accountable public schools that welcome and serve all students."
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