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Strangely enough, I would turn to the we are determined to gain our rightful place in 5
Almighty, and say, “If you allow me to live just a God’s world.
few years in the second half of the twentieth And that’s all this whole thing is about. We 15
century, I will be happy.” aren’t engaged in any negative protest and in section three
Now that’s a strange statement to make, 10 any negative arguments with anybody. We are
because the world is all messed up. The nation is saying that we are determined to be men. We are
sick. Trouble is in the land; confusion all around. determined to be people. We are saying — We /
That’s a strange statement. But I know, are saying that we are God’s children. And that
somehow, that only when it is dark enough can we are God’s children, we don’t have to live like
you see the stars. And I see God working in this we are forced to live.
period of the twentieth century in a way that Now, what does all of this mean in this great Martin Luther King Jr.
men, in some strange way, are responding. period of history? It means that we’ve got to stay
Something is happening in our world. The together. We’ve got to stay together and
masses of people are rising up. And wherever they maintain unity. You know, whenever Pharaoh
are assembled today, whether they are in wanted to prolong the period of slavery in Egypt,
Johannesburg, South Africa; Nairobi, Kenya; Accra, he had a favorite, favorite formula for doing it.
Ghana; New York City; Atlanta, Georgia; Jackson, What was that? He kept the slaves fighting
Mississippi; or Memphis, Tennessee — the cry is among themselves. But whenever the slaves get
always the same: “We want to be free.” together, something happens in Pharaoh’s court,
And another reason that I’m happy to live in and he cannot hold the slaves in slavery. When
this period is that we have been forced to a point the slaves get together, that’s the beginning of
where we are going to have to grapple with the getting out of slavery. Now let us maintain unity.
problems that men have been trying to grapple Secondly, let us keep the issues where they
with through history, but the demands didn’t are. The issue is injustice. The issue is the refusal
force them to do it. Survival demands that we of Memphis to be fair and honest in its dealings
grapple with them. Men, for years now, have with its public servants, who happen to be
been talking about war and peace. But now, no sanitation workers. Now, we’ve got to keep
longer can they just talk about it. It is no longer a attention on that. That’s always the problem
choice between violence and nonviolence in this with a little violence. You know what happened
world; it’s nonviolence or nonexistence. That is the other day, and the press dealt only with the
where we are today. window-breaking. I read the articles. They very
And also in the human rights revolution, if seldom got around to mentioning the fact that
something isn’t done, and done in a hurry, to one thousand, three hundred sanitation workers
bring the colored peoples of the world out of their are on strike, and that Memphis is not being fair
long years of poverty, their long years of hurt and to them, and that Mayor Loeb is in dire need of a
neglect, the whole world is doomed. Now, I’m doctor. They didn’t get around to that.
just happy that God has allowed me to live in this Now we’re going to march again, and we’ve
period to see what is unfolding. And I’m happy got to march again, in order to put the issue
that He’s allowed me to be in Memphis. where it is supposed to be — and force
I can remember — I can remember when everybody to see that there are thirteen hundred
Negroes were just going around as Ralph has of God’s children here suffering, sometimes
said, so often, scratching where they didn’t itch, going hungry, going through dark and dreary
and laughing when they were not tickled. But nights wondering how this thing is going to
that day is all over. We mean business now, and come out. That’s the issue. And we’ve got to say
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