DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING

Women’s History Month: Celebrating the Voice That Sang a Nation Into Change

When one thinks of women who pushed the boundaries of civil rights, one seminal figure is rarely mentioned. Her name was Marian Anderson.

Ode to Those Thankful For You, This Thanksgiving

Who will be thankful for you—for your understanding, tolerance, magnanimity, equanimity, inclusion?

I’ll STAND Up for You

I’ll stand up for truth and fairness and equal rights. I’ll stand up for your freedom of thought and expression. I’ll stand up for your right to use your own discretion. Because you’re worth it, and for me to stand up for you—well, to be truthful, that’s standing up for me, too.

Discrimination Is Passé

In 1963, Martin Luther King had a dream. A dream of freedom and equality for all. He got shot for it. The bullet which killed him is what one could call the essence of “unwillingness to accept views, beliefs, or behavior that differ from one’s own.” This is the exact definition of “intolerance.”

Why Religion Matters

As a child growing up in the Sixties, I heard plenty of chants that “God is dead.” I watched as people around me, wanting to change the world and their place in it, turned to drugs as a solution.

What Is It That Bigots Hate? That You Communicate.

When you look at bigotry (or more succinctly “hate”) as one person’s desire to ensure the target of the bigotry stops communicating, it makes more sense.

Passion Without Compassion is Oppression

If you make an enemy of those whose ideas are not the same as yours, they will do everything they can to stop you. I can guarantee this won’t help your cause, whatever it may be.

How it Felt to Be Treated Like a Nazi

When I was in third grade, I had a teacher who despised me. It wasn't because of anything I'd done to her, and it wasn't that I was a difficult student. In fact, I loved learning, was an avid reader, and was pretty social, so school was a perfect fit. Except for Mrs. Goldwitch.

Shining a Light Into the Darkness

One of the most uplifting things about the human experience is when people suffering unimaginable loss choose to channel their grief and pain into something so constructive that it outshines the tragedy. A recent article I came across served as a reminder of this, and as an inspiration.