Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #MLKDay

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Today is the last day of #BlackHistoryMonth.

#FortBendCounty #Texas is home to a breadth of important Black history—and underrecognized history-makers.

Today, I rise to recognize #BenjaminFranklinWilliams, one of Fort Bend's first Black civic leaders.

(thread) Portrait of State Represent...
Williams (1819–1886) was born into slavery. As part of the slave trade, he was repeatedly uprooted and relocated across the southern United States, until reaching the Texas gulf coast region in 1859.
Here, Williams became involved in politics and quickly ascended as a formidable political leader – not just for his community, but for the entire state.

He served as vice-president of the Loyal Union League, a pro-Lincoln organization that mobilized Blacks and Unionists.
Read 13 tweets
I wasn't expecting to start the day with this kind of encoded language as a cover story, but here we are. @TIME clearly had ⬜male editors read this and say, "This is great! We prefer the sound of OUR voices over those perky women, BIPOC, LGBTQ and disabled folks anyway!"
1/🧵
And therein a cover story was born in which those historically marginalized and suppressed voices are silenced for being "attention seekers." No. Activist voices in any given room are NOT attention-seekers or narcissists--we are the voices of the actual majority.
2/🧵
In the US women are the majority yet treated like a minority in every aspect of society. BIPOC represent 40% of the country and some states like California and Texas, more than half. There are 62M disabled Americans and nearly 10% of Americans identify as LGBTQ.
3/🧵
Read 8 tweets
Dr. King envisioned a world where all our diverse communities would join together. Today, I had the honor of recognizing #MLKDay by doing just that.

It was great to stop by @bx_uniongrove today to celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the Bronx. Attorney General James attends a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
I joined @BAM_Brooklyn for its annual event to pay tribute to the legacy of Dr. King.

Dr. King's work touched every corner of our society, and his message has been carried on through music and the arts as an instrument of change. Attorney General James speaks at a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr
Dr. King taught us that arc of the moral universe is long, but it always bends towards justice.

Proud to have been in the House of Justice with @TheRevAl and @NationalAction this afternoon to continue carrying out Dr. King’s legacy. Attorney General James speaks at a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr
Read 4 tweets
My reflections this #MLKDay:

“The events of January 6th would be uppermost in the mind of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It would weigh on him this January and every month as well. 1/15
“Relatedly, America is in a crucible as authoritarians, driven by racism, seek to erase the progress of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement. In this maelstrom Dr. King would hold a single truth as a retort: We aren’t going back! 2/15
“King would recognize those who assaulted the people’s Republic that day and the elected officials who organized and defended the mob. Each of them would be very familiar to him. 3/15
Read 15 tweets
As Biden attempts to appropriate #MLKDay, remember that he continued to fight against desegregation for years after MLK was assassinated. Even former KKK leader Robert Byrd thought he went too far. 1/3
Biden, the white moderate MLK warned about, consistently sided with his fellow segregationists against progress. 2/3
Instead of apologizing, Biden lies about participating in the civil rights movement that he actively worked to suppress. He previously admitted this isn't true, yet he still says it. 3/3
Read 3 tweets
🧵 Y’all know how much I love “The Twilight Zone”

Here’s what Rod Serling had to say after Dr. King was assassinated. It’s powerful & still applicable. 🧵 #MLKDay
There is a bitter sadness and special irony that attends the passing of Martin Luther King. Quickly and with ease, we offer up a chorus of posthumous praise—the ritual dirge so time-honored and comfortable and undemanding of anything but rhetoric.
In death, we offer the acknowledgement of the man and his dream that we denied him in life. In his grave, we praise him for his decency—but when he walked amongst us, we responded with no decency of our own.
Read 12 tweets
🧵 of #MLK speeches and sermons in which he speaks truth to power, shares about his philosophy of nonviolence, and expounds on issues of injustice and what our righteous, rigorous response should be.

Relevant.
Revelatory.
Revolutionary.

#MLKDay #MLKDay2023
Our #MLKDay2023 #MLKDay featured #MLK speech is ‘Creative Maladjustment’:
“I accept this award today with an abiding faith in America and an audacious faith in the future of mankind. I refuse to accept despair as the final response to the ambiguities of history.”

#MLK #MLKDay #MLKDay2023 #NobelPeacePrize

Full speech:
Read 15 tweets
The Republican Party’s coalition consists of two groups: Those who don’t think that the GOP’s embrace of a politician who wants to execute her political opponents is a dealbreaker - and those who are voting Republican precisely because the party embraces her extremism.
The former group is bigger. But a significant portion of the base is in the latter, and the acute threat to democracy results from the fact that the people in the former camp can’t be bothered to break with a party in which the likes of Marjorie Taylor Greene keep rising.
Let’s keep that in mind on #MLKDay, as Republican politicians will inevitably invoke the legacy of Martin Luther King to call for “civility” and “unity” - with the sole purpose of delegitimizing any critique of racist structures and practices, any demand for equality and respect.
Read 8 tweets
🧵I want to see in color today, Daddy. Love you. Miss you.

#MLK #MLKDay
Joy matters.

“The dawn will come.”

#MLK #MLKDay
“A Church that has lost its voice for justice is a Church that has lost its relevance in the world.”

#MLK #MLKDay
Read 18 tweets
"On this MLK Day, let's be honest with ourselves and with his legacy: let's remember Dr King as the man, as the proud radical and socialist, he actually was - not as the man we conveniently want him or imagine him to be."

My @MSNBC commentary tonight:
In a speech less than a year before he died, MLK referred to the U.S. government as "the greatest purveyor of violence in the world."

Funnily enough that quote isn't one of the quotes on the walls of his memorial, nor is it ever cited by U.S. politicians:
"For most Republicans, Dr King is just the guy who said to forget about skin color; they basically just know one quote of his, out of context, & they repeat it ad nauseam."

My commentary, for #MLKDay, on the real MLK vs the 'Santa Clausification' of him:
Read 3 tweets
This is the book Coretta Scott sent to MLK while he was in seminary and before they were married. In a letter he wrote to her:
“By the way (to turn to something more intellectual) I have just completed Bellamy's Looking Backward. It was both stimulating and facinating.”
In the letter MLK goes hints at his ideas about an economic agenda for uplift.
“I welcomed the book because much of its content is in line with my basic ideas. I imagine you already know that I am much more socialistic in my economic theory than capitalistic.”
But MLK had his critiques of Bellamy’s book:
“On the negative side of the picture Bellamy falls victim to the same error that most writers of Utopian societies fall victim to, viz., idealism not tempered with realism.” kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/do…
Read 5 tweets
Two years ago today, I received my first call to script & coordinate a video, combining campus 'celebrities,' to deliver critical #COVID19 messaging. The approach became a cornerstone of our comms strategy, culminating today, with our mask optional release
With my past experience building the @MIGovernment digital footprint, and strong @MichiganStateU connections, the initial concept brought on-field and on-court coaches, and campus athletics leadership, together for a cause.
Following the video's success, efforts turned to further encourage our campus community to stay home and stay safe. Our ‘Silent Campus’ video stood as a stark and stunning reminder of the gravity of the situation in that first month of #COVID19.
Read 20 tweets
From an #MLKDay trip to the birthplace of Dr. King to the awarding of tens of millions of dollars in equitable COVID-19 relief to Tribal communities, @HUDGov had a productive week.

Follow along! #HUDWeekInReview
Monday, I joined @TheKingCenter to commemorate the life and legacy of Dr. King.

MLK reminded us that “change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle.”

The struggle continues; it starts with us.
On Tuesday, we announced the awarding of more than $83 million in grants to 74 Tribal communities to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. hud.gov/press/press_re…
Read 6 tweets
As GOP Senators try to explain why they don’t think #VotingRights are important, sharing here what each tweeted on #MLKDay
Find yours to retweet.
#MLK : “Our most urgent request to the president of the United States & every member of Congress is to give us the right to vote.”
But first, this message from, @BerniceKing
‘Please share this quote from my father #MLKDay2022 :
“I think the tragedy is that we have a Congress with a Senate that has a minority of misguided senators who will use the filibuster to keep the majority of people from even voting.”
You know what light would drive out the darkness for MLK and for your Constituents, @SenJohnBarrasso?
#VotingRightsForThePeople
Read 47 tweets
Morning!

Remember how 147 Republicans tried to reject a democratically elected president right after an insurrection at the Capitol?

Nearly all spent MLK Day associating themselves with MLK's legacy of peace, justice + sacrifice for the greater good. 🇺🇸
huffpost.com/entry/republic…
A little sampling of the messages of "unity" and "justice" that Republican lawmakers advocated on MLK Day to honor Martin Luther King -- despite the fact that they *all* oppose voting rights legislation + dozens voted to overturn the presidential election based on a lie:
"I believe that unarmed truth & unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant."

-Sen. John Kennedy*, quoting MLK

*He's blocking voting rights bills + tried to overturn the presidential election
Read 18 tweets
Nearly all of the 147 Republican lawmakers who tried to overturn the 2020 presidential election + spread the lie that fueled the Jan. 6 Capitol attack spent MLK Day hailing MLK's legacy of peace, justice and sacrifice for the greater good. 🇺🇸huffpost.com/entry/republic…
Several hailed Martin Luther King’s efforts to make America “a more perfect union.” They posted picture of King and his shared quotes.

None mentioned that just over a year ago, they all voted to reject a democratically elected president + spread a deadly lie to justify doing so.
None of these dozens of Republican lawmakers mentioned that they all oppose current voting rights legislation, either.

#MLKDay
Read 4 tweets
In an attempt to distance himself from videos he’s made repeatedly saying, “I love harassing cancer patients,” Kari Lake supporter Ethan Schmidt revisited the cancer wig store where it all started.
Ethan records himself entering Sonny’s Hair and Wigs, a cancer wig shop that requires masks for obvious reasons and asks, “You’re going to discriminate on #MLKDay ?”

The shop knows who he is and says they have an injunction against him. They push their panic button and call 911.
Ethan claims, “Martin Luther King, Jr. is on my side,” as he refuses to leave and says it’s the cancer wig shop that is harassing them.

Ethan then threatens to have the shop “blasted” and tells his followers to “blow up their phone lines, give them reviews.”

Let’s support them!
Read 10 tweets
There is a moment in Season 4, Episode 8 of #TheCrown that explains the #VotingRights impasse. 1/ #MLKDay
In this e8, The Queen want to unite the Commonwealth to oppose Apartheid, but she must get the one holdout to sign on first—Margaret Thatcher. Thatcher won’t budge. 2/ #VotingRightsAct #thecrown
Round after round the Queen’s men bring her edited versions of the coalition’s statement. Each time she whips out her red pen sniping, “No. No. No.” 3/
#VotingRightsAct #thecrown
Read 17 tweets
Excellent turnout for the #MLKDay March here in #PrescottAZ.

The theme of this year’s event was “Marching Forward In Love”

Let’s honor the legacy of MLK by protecting access to the ballot in 2022! #VotingRightsForMLK
Everyone who follows this handle knows that #PrescottAZ is a very conservative place, but the amazing turnout today is further evidence that the values embodied by Dr. King and the #MLKLegacy are cherished by a whole lot of folks who live here.
We marched from Prescott College to downtown via Gurley. around the Square (shown here) and back up Gurley to the Prescott United Methodist Church for a beautiful program honoring the #MLKLegacy .

Thank you to the MLK Day Committee organizers who made this event a success!
Read 3 tweets
to honor @DrTJC on #MLKDay, I'm sharing my brief introductory speech from 2019.
here is his fantastic keynote:
BMS is a paradigm shift, a scientific revolution, which explains the current resistance in academia to this emerging field. eventually, however, BMS will replace theories with less explanatory power when it comes to understanding racialized male vulnerability.
Read 4 tweets
On the 35th annual celebration of Dr. King in Jan. 2020, the Colorado Poor People’s Campaign hosted a rally coinciding the city’s official rally to highlight how they believe “the legacy of Dr. King has been co-opted by capitalism and corporatism.”
Watch our stream from #MLKDay in Jan. 2020 in #Denver here---> pscp.tv/UR_Ninja/1LyxB…
The first speaker at the 2020 rally was Ari from @BLM5280 (Black Lives Matter 5280) who reminded the crowd that just before MLK was assassinated, he and others “called for a unification of the poor.”
Read 5 tweets
1/ Reminder that the #OCBoardofEducation removed a Martin Luther King book in 1971 because MLK was a "conscious support of communism."

Yes, the same board that today pushes anti CRT & anti ethnic studies as "communist" or "marxist."
#MartinLutherKingDay #OrangeCounty #California Image
2/ By 1971, there was a John Birch Society member on the #OCBoardofEducation & their members were targeting local school districts. In Anaheim, it was a textbook that discussed how to review media with a critical eye & recognize propaganda. Ironic. Image
3/ May 1971: .@latimes called attention to the board's book banning of the Martin Luther King biography, "the #OCBoardofEducation is at it again."

The OCBE had previously banned Pulitzer Prize winner John Hersey's book "Hiroshima" and was banning a book by Joan Baez. Image
Read 6 tweets
The timing is no coincidence. The day after #MLKDay House Education Committee Chair
@michudall will hear her bill to muzzle teachers by banning factual discussion of controversial subjects like racial injustice and discrimination. #CRT #HB2112 🧵
None of the concepts Rep. Udall's bill seeks to ban are taught in Arizona schools. That's irrelevant. The bill would open the door for any political activist sowing anti-"Critical Race Theory" hysteria to wreak havoc in Arizona schools, costing $ and ruining careers.
For example, if discussions of the Holocaust, or why we celebrate MLK Day, or why Arizona took longer than other states to approve the holiday, or the Navajo Trail of Tears bring discomfort to an activist, the school can be sued and the teacher fired.
Read 10 tweets

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