Martin Luther King DAY 2026
FROM THE LEAGUE ARCHIVES: Martin Luther King, Jr. was born January 15, 1929, 96 years ago. As an adult, he was the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and he brought a profound sense of Christian spirituality to the struggle for human liberation. He would have been deeply moved by the spirituality of our modern water protectors. He would most likely locked arms with the members of Jewish Voice for Peace congregations around the United States. He would have brought his sermons demanding decent working conditions to Starbucks and Amazon picket lines. No doubt he would join unhoused encampments around the country resisting sweeps, immigrants facing deportation along the border and places like Chicago, drinking bottled water in Flint, MI, and in the Navajo Nation, where residents fight for the right to drink clean water. He might have visited the United Nations to denounce US policy in Gaza and support the International Criminal Court indictment of Netanyahu. He would not have been a toothless icon, instead a warrior for the soul of society.
We reprint the following article from the League Archives because, in the midst of a social revolution, spiritual revolutionaries of all faiths are emerging that carry on King’s legacy. In this case, quoted from the article, King refutes the right wing distortion of a biblical passaage: “The Biblical teaching that “the poor will always be with us” for example, has been twisted from its original meaning, “to always be generous and openhanded,” to one that justifies exploitation and misery by claiming that nothing can be done about poverty, so it is useless to try. Martin Luther King Jr. rebuked this interpretation when he explained, “There is nothing new about poverty. What is new is that we now have the techniques and the resources to get rid of poverty. The real question is whether we have the will.”
Facts alone will not defeat those who have been caught up in reactionary spiritual traps. We have to meet the Christian nationalists with a “spiritual internationalism.” This article speaks to that need. We stand with the many who are stepping forward to be part of this social revolution.
https://rally-theleague.org/without-a-vision-the-people-perish/
For more information about the League, visit lrna.org. We welcome your questions and comments. We’re NOT just about talking the talk. If you are trying to do something about these times that try people’s souls, and you are looking for a political home, we encourage you to investigate the League! Join us.
Photo credit: Progressive Magazine on line, January 2025.
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1/16/26
