#MLK50: The Beloved Community
“It is impossible for white Americans to grasp the depths and dimensions of the Negro’s dilemma without understanding what it means to be a Negro in America. Of course it is not easy to perform this act of empathy. Putting oneself in another person’s place is always fraught with difficulties. Over and over again it is said in the black ghettos of America that ‘no white person can ever understand what it means to be a Negro.’ There is good reason for this assumption, for there is very little in the life and experience of white America that can compare to the curse this society has put on color. And yet, if the present chasm of hostility, fear and distrust is to be bridged, the white man must begin to walk in the pathways of his black brothers and feel some of the pain and hurt that throb without letup in their daily lives.”
Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr., MLK50, Racism in America, Rev Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, the Beloved Community
derrick knight
So true – even if we try
Ellen Morris Prewitt
I do think the trying tells us how far we fall short, which is so valuable to remember. Thank you for reading and commenting—it means a lot.
Hilary Custance Green
I try in my writing, and know that I fail, but trying is the start.
Ellen Morris Prewitt
I so agree.