A Society That Can Live With Its Conscience
The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington DC is a powerful reminder of Dr. King's work and legacy. The monument is surrounded by words that King said throughout his life. Two parted rocks, almost reminiscent of the Red Sea parted by Moses, welcome visitors to a quiet and reflective space. The inspiration for the design of the monument came from Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech, in which he says "out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope." The memorial was designed by ROMA Design Group, a San Francisco architectural firm, and carved by Chinese sculptor Lei Yixin. It was first conceptualized in 1996 and finished in 2011. Since then, it has been visited by millions of Americans. I'll share one of the quotes at the memorial that particularly spoke to me below.
This quote struck me because, today, I do not think that society is quite ready to live with its conscience, nor is it at peace with itself. The time period when the spirituals were written is painful. The time period when Martin Luther King Jr. was leading the civil rights movement is painful. Despite the victories in fighting slavery, racism, and discrimination throughout the years, even today is painful. King had the foresight to understand that even in the future we would be at war with our sometimes horrible history.
This message reminded me of the spiritual "Been in the Storm So Long." The line "I've been in the storm so long" repeats throughout the spiritual. The storm could be seen as the lack of peace that Martin Luther King Jr. mentions in this quote. This "storm" has been present since the founding of this country. Much like we saw in The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson, storms can cause many problems both literally and figuratively. Yet, storms all eventually clear up. This storm, this period of unrest, of injustice, will eventually end. It will, of course, take work and diligence from not just a leader like Martin Luther King Jr., but from everyone. Eventually, then, we can find this peace that Dr. King mentions and a society that can live with its troubled past.
Hey Griffin! I really enjoyed your quote and your blog post. I also visited the memorial at night, and I thought it was a really cool way of experiencing the quotes and the statue. It still surprises me that it took so long to make a memorial to MLK in the National Mall. As for your quote, I think it's really tragic to think of America's conscience. There's still so much work to be done until I feel like America can be at peace with itself, and although it can feel like an insurmountable task, I think Dr. King's words can assuage some of that hesitancy. Thanks for your thoughts!
ReplyDeleteHey Griffin, I think the relation to the spiritual "Been in the Storm So Long" is great. I think it is very interesting that you included and related the message back to messages we saw in The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson. I think that we have always had a storm, as you describe it, over our society. I would relate it to a constant rain and periods such as the Civil Rights Movement as thunderstorms, if that makes sense. The storm over our society is definitely not over, but I hope one day we can see it pass.
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