Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Barack Obama Two Men, One Theory
We all know that Barack Obama is a wonderful man, as a public speaker, a father, and a husband. His family and him respect and show a community of people who accept and value differences. Obama acknowledges and fights racism. He appreciates non-violence and equality. He is truly following the steps of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
“Be kind and be useful and caring about people who are less fortunate than you.” (Ann Dunham, Barack Obama’s mother) This is probably the reason he is such a caring and awesome man accepting and valuing differences in all mankind. He visited Africa, Asia, South America and all needy communities globally, encouraging them to be hardworking. “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” (Dr. King) Dr. King spoke wisely, choosing his words carefully. He always addressed hate and violence with love and nonviolence, not with anger. “If we don’t stand up for tolerance and moderation and respect for others, if we begin to doubt all that we have accomplished, then much of the progress that we have made will not continue.” (Barack Obama’s speech in Indonesia) Obama tries to spread the message of peace and tolerance through his wise words and actions. Dr. King showed patience and treated everyone equally, whether they were white or black, Christians or Muslims, Hindus or Jews. Obama is the first ever American president who visited a Muslim place of worship, a ‘Mosque,’ in Baltimore MD and showed a historical pathway to peace to end any discrimination. These are two amazing people who lived and live before and during our lives.
In his iconic, ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, Dr. King said, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. I have a dream today!” In these words, Dr. King is fighting racial discrimination with such strong words, that reach his followers and opponents hearts for generations to come. Dr. King’s words have proven truthful in the form of President Obama, after several years when American people selected a black man as The Nation’s president. Barack Obama said, “You should be proud of who you are and your background. And you should appreciate the differences in language and food. And how you worship God is going to be different and those are things you should be proud of. But it shouldn’t be a tool to look down on somebody else. It shouldn’t be a reason to discriminate.” In these words, Obama is calmly telling all people to never discriminate anyone because of their religion, food, language, and background. These are all excuses which lead to the common problem of HATE. Everyone is equal. This is the only pathway to peace and is a common message between Dr. King and Barack Obama.
Dr. King appreciated nonviolence even in its simplest form. “Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him.” (Dr. King) Even if someone spoke with him or stood by him, Dr. King thought of it as an example of nonviolence. “We cannot stop every act of senseless violence. We cannot know every evil that lurks in troubled minds. But if we can prevent even one tragedy…, save even one life, spare other families what these families are going through, surely we’ve got and obligation to try.” (Obama) These words are so true as we CAN’T stop every act of violence. We CAN’T know every evil. We DON’T know what creeps in every mind, but if we stop even one tragedy like an attack, we won’t be just saving one life, we’d be saving the whole mankind. If we save a family living in poverty and give them food, water, and shelter, they’d be happy and very thankful. We as Americans have a big obligation to take care of America and its people. We surely do.
Throughout his life, Martin Luther King Jr. always accepted and valued differences. He acknowledged and fought racism and appreciated nonviolence and equality. Barack Obama also showed these qualities throughout his life. Dr. King died following these qualities. He was jailed 29 times for his nonviolent protests. His assassination was attempted once before he was killed. Still he didn’t give up until the day that he died. Obama has followed his lead. Wearing his Santa hat, Obama surprised kids at children’s hospital with a sack of toys before Christmas. The kids there were happy and surprised. They sang him a variation of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” These are two amazing people who tried and still try, through these principles, to end racial discrimination throughout America and the world.