Sounding Board -- Stephen R.D. Glass

For the past 16 years, the third Monday in January has been perceived

to be only an African American holiday called King Day. The King holiday

is an American holiday that should be celebrated and commemorated by all

Americans. Unfortunately, the readers of the Daily Pilot were not

presented with that perspective in Tony Dodero’s column on Monday (From

the Newsroom -- “There exist great reasons to be off today”). King

deserves a national day of recognition because he was a great American.

Nineteenth century social critic Thomas Carlyle created the Great Man

theory to assess the impact men have had on history. The criteria for the

assessment of greatness is threefold:

* charisma -- how the individual interacts with or had influence upon

others;

* genius -- the individual must possess special insight;

* impact on the social force -- the individual must have a significant

impact on one or more of the social forces (religion, technology,

nationalism, imperialism, racism, sexism and/or economics) to change the

course of history.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. meets the criteria and is, thus, a

great man.

King’s charisma is undeniable. He had significant impact and influence

on the power structure of the United States from the time that he became

the president of the Montgomery Improvement Assn. until he was selected

to serve as the first president of the Southern Christian Leadership

Conference. He was chosen as a recipient of the prestigious Nobel Peace

Prize and he was the champion of civil rights for all oppressed and poor

people throughout the world.

The doctrine of nonviolent change was a Christian principle used by

King to expose the issues of discrimination, prejudice and racism as

common practices in American society. King displayed the characteristic

of genius by demanding that the proponents of civil rights follow this

principle and not resort to violence even in the face of violence. And

while African American men and women, boys and girls were threatened,

beaten and lynched, King never relented in his resolve: Meet violence

with Christian love.

King’s impact on the social forces of religion, nationalism,

imperialism, racism and economics are all clear. King used his Christian

ethic and religious training to help create a movement in America that

dismantled segregation. He helped to uplift African Americans from a

second-class status and broadened his focus to all oppressed and

economically disadvantaged people throughout America and the world.

King’s impact on racism is recognized as his largest achievement.

Finally, in the economic arena, King used the 13-month Montgomery Bus

Boycott in Alabama for social change and political influence.

The focus of King Day should be on what the man stood for as an

American, not a conciliatory, uncommitted column setting aside King’s

“failings” in an impassioned plea to explain why Newporters should

celebrate this man’s life. To reduce King to six quotes is disrespectful

and irresponsible.

Clearly, Dodero and the readers of the Daily Pilot are entitled to

more than a “mini-lesson” on “one of the greatest civil rights leaders

ever to walk the Earth.” Dare to break the chains and images of

psychological slavery. Otherwise, we will continue to miseducate and

misinform ourselves and our children by insisting that King freed blacks

from slavery or fought for the right to sit on busses next to whites (see

“Kids Talk Back,” Jan. 22).

* STEPHEN R.D. GLASS is a Costa Mesa resident.