Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. devoted his life to seeking equality and human rights for African Americans, the economically disadvantaged, and all victims of injustice through peaceful protest. He was the driving force behind watershed events, such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the 1963 March on Washington, which helped bring about such landmark legislation as the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.
Dr. King’s message is as vitally important now as it was when he lived. While we remember him on Martin Luther King Jr. Day—this year the U.S. federal holiday is on January 17th—his words of moral conscious and his plea for freedom, equality, justice, and love ring true every day of the year.
Here are seven iconic MLK quotes found at the King Memorial in Washington, DC. Each represents his moral conscience and his message of freedom, equality, justice, and love.
- “We shall overcome because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.”
- “Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.”
- “Make a career of humanity. Commit yourself to the noble struggle for equal rights. You will make a greater person of yourself, a greater nation of your country, and a finer world to live in.”
- “If we are to have peace on earth, our loyalties must become ecumenical rather than sectional. Our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective.”
- “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
- “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”
- “True peace is not merely the absence of tension: it is the presence of justice.”
To read or listen to Dr. King’s iconic “I Have a Dream” speech, go to https://www.npr.org/2010/01/18/122701268/i-have-a-dream-speech-in-its-entirety
For a list of educational resources about racism, please go to: https://www.wjcs.com/featured-homepage/resources-to-fight-racism
