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[Pages S271-S272]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REVEREND DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. DAY
Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, on January 20, we celebrate the 91st
anniversary of the birth of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In
the short 39 years that he spent on Earth, Dr. King inspired more
change, touched more lives, and lifted up more voices than most of us
could hope to in many lifetimes. With his message of compassion, he
shepherded a civil rights movement defined by love and peacefulness,
despite the violence and hatred raging all around. He bravely preached
the equal value of every human soul, and he was killed for it. That
day, we lost a champion for justice who can never be replaced.
Nearly 52 years after Dr. King's murder, it is important to pause and
reflect on the profound impact that his dream of peace and equality has
had on our Nation's character. Dr. King's legacy includes expanded
voting rights, more inclusive housing policies, and the legal
prohibition of discrimination on the basis of race. Not only that, but
his advocacy for economic justice illuminated the ways that race and
class intersect in America, inspiring future generations to demand
freedom from all vectors of oppression.
But today is also an opportunity to reflect on what is still needed
to make Dr. King's dream a reality. Our criminal justice system still
operates as a tool with which to surveil and subjugate minority
communities.
People of color, especially African Americans, are still
disenfranchised at substantially higher rates and have to navigate
sophisticated voter deception and intimidation practices in order to
exercise their right to vote. And White supremacists are still marching
in the streets while the occupant of our country's highest office
proclaims that there are ``good people on both sides.''
It turns out that the forces of injustice that Dr. King fought to
eradicate are strong and adaptable. Often, when we think we have
defeated them, they have in fact taken a new, unfamiliar form, or
simply hidden below the surface, waiting for an opportunity to emerge.
Sadly, there are too many in power right now who offer platforms and
shelter to these forces. They threaten to drag our country back to a
darker time.
We can't let that happen. I appreciate how daunting that imperative
is--goodness knows that I ask myself all the time how I, just one man,
can possibly effect the change that I hope to see in the world. But it
helps to remember that Martin Luther King was also just one man, one
ordinary man called to an extraordinary mission.
So all we need to do is model ourselves in Dr. King's image. Easy,
right? Maybe not. But a good way to start is to recall his lesson that
``life's most persistent question is: what are you doing for others?''
Dr. King taught us that justice doesn't have to be sweeping and grand--
it can be quiet; it can take root in small moments. The world that he
envisioned can be planted with good deeds between neighbors, helping
hands offered to friends, and displays of empathy for complete
strangers.
When we do these things, we recognize each other's humanity, we bond
ourselves to one another, and then we come to see that none of us is
striving alone for a better world. That togetherness, that solidarity,
will always win out over hatred and fear.
Another thing we can do is support the systems and institutions that
have the power to uphold equality. This is where I make my plug for the
census. The upcoming decennial census will be used to determine
congressional representation and the fair distribution of
[[Page S272]]
Federal resources for things like schools, hospitals, and housing. It
has the potential to ensure that all Americans get the services and
political representation to which they are entitled, or it could
further skew the playing field in favor of the already privileged. It
all depends on whether minority communities are fully counted.
Historically, they have not been. That is why I am asking each and
every American to please, please participate in the census this year.
Dr. King taught us that every human being is equal, that all of us
deserve to live with dignity and respect. He shined a light on the
forgotten and the oppressed and demanded better for them. Help to honor
his memory by making sure that no one goes uncounted. Carry on his
legacy by demanding a government that serves and protects each of its
citizens equally. In this way, we can continue building the world that
Dr. King envisioned.
(At the request of Mr. Rounds, the following statement was ordered to
be printed in the Record.)
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