J anuary 11, 1995 • T he P ortland O bserver
P a g e C 18
King Holiday Begins
6 6 There comes a time when a moral man can’t obey a law
which his conscience tells him is unjust. And the important
thing is that when he does that, he willingly accepts the
penalty-because if he refuses to accept the penalty, then he
becomes reckless, and he becomes an anarchist. There were
those individuals in every age and generation who were
willing to say, ‘I will be obedient to a higher law.’ It is
important to see there are times when a man made law is out
of harmony with the moral law of the universe. 99
President Reagan's 1986 Proclamation
T h is y e a r m ark s th e first o b se rv a n e e o f the birthday o f Dr. M artin L u th e r K ing, Jr. as a n atio n al
h o lid ay . It i s a tu n e for re jo ic in g and re fle e tin g . W e rejo iee becau se, in his sh o rt life. D r. K ing, by his
p re a c h in g , his e x a m p le , an d his le ad ersh ip , help ed to m ove us c lo se r to the ideals o n w h ich A m e ric a
w as fo u n d e d . W e re fle c t on h i s w o rd s and his w orks. D r. K in g ’s w as truly a p ro p h e tic voice that
re a c h e d out o v e r th e c h a sm s o f h o stility , p re ju d ic e , ig n o ra n c e , and fe a r to to u ch the c o n sc ie n c e o f
A m e ric a . H e c h a lle n g e d us to m ak e real the p ro m ise o f A m e ric a a s a land o f freed o m , e q u a lity ,
o p p o rtu n ity , an d b ro th e rh o o d .
Although I Yi King was an uncompromising champion on nonviolence, he was often the victim o f violence.
And, as we know, a shameful act o f violence cut short his life before he had reached his fortieth birthday.
His story is well-known. A s a 26-year-old minister of the Gospel. Dr. King led a protest boycott o f a bus
- Martin Luther King Jr.
company that segregated blacks, treating them as second-class citizens. At the very outset he admonished all those
w ho w ould join in the protest th at‘ our actions must be guided by the deepest principles of our Christian faith. Love
must be our regulating ideal . " Otherwise, he warned, "our protest will end up as a meaningless drama on the stage
o f history ...shrouded w ith ugly garments o f shame." Dr. K ing’s unshakable faith inspired others to resist the
6 6 We are
prone to judge
success by the
index o f o u r
salaries or the
size of our au-
to m o b ile s ,
rather than by
the quality of
our service and
relationship to
hum anity.9 9
temptation to hate and fear. His protest became a triumph o f courage and love.
A lm o st 3 0 y e a rs ag o , on Jan . 30, 1956, Dr. K ing stood am id the bro k en g lass an d sp lin te rs o f his
b o m b e d -o u t fro n t p o rc h an d c a lm e d an an g ry c ro w d c la m o rin g for ven g ean ce. “W e c a n n o t solve this
p ro b le m th ro u g h reta lia to ry v io le n c e ," he told them . D r. K ing stead fastly o p p o sed both the tim id and
th o se w h o c o u n se lle d v io len ce. T o the fo rm e r, he p re a c h e d that "tru e peace is not m erely the a b se n c e
o f te n sio n ; it is the p re se n c e o f ju stic e : T o the latter, he sa itfth a t “ in the p ro cess o f g a in in g o u r rig h tfu l
p la c e w e m u st not be g u ilty o f w ro n g fu l d eeds.
D r. K in g ’s a c tiv ism w as ro o te d in the tru e p a trio tism that c h e rish e s A m e ric a ’s ideals an d strives
to n a rro w th e g ap b e tw e e n th o se id eals and reality. H e to o k his stan d , he once e x p la in e d , “b e c a u se
o f m y love fo r A m e ric a a n d the su b lim e p rin c ip le s o f liberty and eq u ality on w hich she is fo u n d e d .”
H e w a n te d “to tra n sfo rm the ja n g lin g d isc o rd s o f o u r N ation in to a b e a u tifu l sy m p h o n y o f
b ro th e rh o o d .”
T h e m a je sty o f his m e ssa g e , the d ig n ity o f his b earin g and the rig h te o u sn e ss o f his c a u se are a
la stin g leg acy . In a few sh o rt y e a rs he c h a n g e d A m e ric a fo r all tim e. H e m ade it p o ssib le fo r o u r N atio n
to m o v e c lo se r to th e id e a ls set forth in o u r D e c la ra tio n o f In d e p e n d e n c e; th at all p e o p le are c re a te d
eq u a l an d are e n d o w e d w ith in a lie n a b le rig h ts that g o v e rn m e n t has the duty to re sp e c t an d p ro tect.
T w e n ty -th re e y ears ag o . D r. K ing spoke to a q u a rte r o f a m illio n A m e ric a n s g a th e re d n e a r the
L in co ln M e m o ria l in W a sh in g to n -a n d to tens o f m illio n s m ore w a tc h in g on te le v isio n . T h ere he held
u p his d re a m fo r A m e ric a lik e a b rig h t banner:
“ I h av e a d re a m ,” he said , “th at m y fo u r little c h ild re n w ill one day live in a N a tio n w h e re they
w ill n o t be ju d g e d by the c o lo r o f th e ir sk in , but by th e c o n te n t o f th e ir c h a ra c te r...T h is w ill be the
day w h en all o f G o d ’s c h ild re n w ill be able to sing w ith new m ean in g , “ M y co u n try ’t i s o f th ee, sw eet
land o f lib erty , o f th e e I sin g .”
Let all Americans continue to cany forward the banner that 18 years ago fell from Dr. King’s hands. Today, all
over America, libranes, hospitals, parks, and thoroughfares proudly bear his name. His likeness appears on ore than
100 postage stamps issued by dozens o f nations around the globe. Today we honor him with speeches and monuments.
But let us do more. Let all Amencans of every race and creed and color w ork together to build in this blessed land a
shining city of brotherhood, justice and harmony. This is the monument Dr. King would have wanted most of all.
Bv Public Law 980144. the thud Monday in January of each year has been designated as a public holiday in
honor o f the “Birthday o f M artin Luther King, Jr.”
N o w , T h e re fo re , I, R o n a ld R eag an , P re sid e n t o f the U n ited S tates o f A m e ric a , d o h ereb y p ro c la im
M o n d a y , Jan . 20, 1986, as M a rtin L u th e r K ing, Jr. D ay.
In Witness W hereof, I have hereunto set my hand this eighteenth day o f January, in the yearof our Lord nineteen
- Martin
Luther King Jr.
The Montgomery bus boycott succeeded because black women
who depended on the buses for transportation refused to ride until
they were granted fair seating. For more than a year, they took
taxis, carpooled, walked and hitchhiked.
6 ‘ We must use time creatively, in the knowledge that the
time is always ripe to do right. Now is the time to make real the
promise of democracy and transform our pending national
elegy into a creative psalm of brotherhood. Now is the time to
life our national policy from the quicksand of racial injustice
to the solid rock of human dignity.9 9
hundred and eighty-six. and of the Independence o f the United States of A merica the two hundred and tenth.
R o n a ld R e a g a n , p re sid e n t o f the U n ite d S tates.
- Martin Luther King Jr.
o
PLEASE
UM IT YOUR
SHOWERS
TO 2 MINUTES.
WE DO NOT
HAVEAGAS
WATER HEATER.
C ut and place
on show erhead.
O r call
1-800 W A R M - 123
to find out how you
can have the cost o f
installing a high-
efficiency. always-
hot-when-you-need-it
natural gas water
heater added to your
monthly gas bill.
(M ost installations can
happen the same day.)
Northwest Hit ura I Gas
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