Keller @ Large: How Much Progress Has Been Made?
BOSTON (CBS) - Happy Martin Luther King Jr. day, on the 30th anniversary of the first observance of a national holiday in honor of Dr. King.
I've said here before that I wish we didn't cancel school on this day, but instead devoted the school day to the study of Dr. King's life and work, with willing adults using their day off to come into the schools and share the experience. And here's one topic we might use that time to discuss: it's been more than half a century since the "I Have A Dream" speech.
How much progress have we made toward becoming a nation where people are judged not "by the color of their skin but by the content of their character"?
Dr. King lived to see historic changes in civil rights law; by many metrics, there has been tremendous progress. But if you read that famous speech, and take note of King's plea for relief from ghettoization and police brutality, it's clear the mission is far from accomplished.
And it's especially troublesome to note that we still haven't even figured out what "character" really means.
It's good that our culture frowns on overt displays of bigotry it once tolerated or even celebrated; but the fact that they persist is discouraging.
It's worrisome to see racist language perpetuated by the young, from the usual goons on the right to angry kids on the left who mistakenly think talk of "white privilege" will get anything done.
And the near-total silence of the leading presidential candidates on civil rights issues is a depressing commentary on the character of our political culture.
So, Happy Birthday, Dr. King.
I wish we could tell you there's special cause to celebrate it this year.
Listen to Jon's commentary: