M.L.K. vs. X. | Judge Me by the Color of My Skin or by the Content of My Character
Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X led the 1960's Civil Rights Movement with such power that their voice continues to ring in our ears today. A voice that preached…
“One day this nation will rise up, live out the true meaning of its creed…that all men are created equal.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
And a voice that said…
“Nobody can give you freedom. Nobody can give you equality or justice or anything. If you’re a man, you take it.” — Malcolm X
And although they agreed on equal rights as their goal they disagreed on how to achieve it…
Malcolm X believed equal rights is best achieved by African Americans building a metaphorical wall around the black community. African Americans should only buy from black businesses, vote for black politicians, and attend black schools.
“We don’t go for segregation. We go for separation. Separation is when you have your own. You control your own economy; you control your own politics; you control your own society; you control your own everything. You have yours and you control yours; we have ours and we control ours.” — Malcolm X
He advocated for black power in retaliation to white power. He saw how white people were proud of their color and he wanted that same pride for his own people. His dream was not of an integrated society. His dream was of a separate, thriving, black community.
“Segregation is that which is forced upon an inferior by a superior. Separation is done voluntarily by two equals.” — Malcolm X
Martin Luther King had a different dream. He dreamed that the content of one’s character mattered more than the color of ones skin.
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
He dreamed that eventually there would be one America. An America where there was no black community nor white community, but only the American community.
“We have fought hard and long for integration, as I believe we should have, and I know that we will win.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
But 60 years later it seems the Malcolm X separatist approach is winning because we are still so hyper-focused on color. There are several reasons for this…
1. Meaning
In America what it means to be a “community” is disintegrating. Neighbors don’t know neighbors. American pride seems to be at an all-time low. Yet the communities that still feel strong are ethnic communities, such as the black, hispanic, asian, Indian, and muslim communities. A community gives one a deeper sense of meaning and so people still prefer to cling to their well-defined ethnic identity then to let it disintegrate in the interest of integration.
2. Ratings
Division drives ratings more than unity. Instead of acting on where we agree we rather pontificate on where we disagree, which usually just ends up in a debate about semantics, terminology, lingo, and team-signaling.
3. Education
The racial divide in America almost entirely still exists because of the inequitable funding of schools. As long as schools are primarily funded through property taxes then we will continue to have a perpetual cycle of poverty and racial divide. In any discussion about the racial divide, equitable education funding should be the front-and-center solution, anything else seeks to put a bandaid over the underlying problem.
I dream of my country becoming color-blind over color-based, integrated over separated, M.L.K. over Maclolm X.
I see the dream as inevitable, but the real question is, “How long?”
“How Long? Not Long, because the arch of the moral universe bends toward justice.” — M.L.K.
I think the answer to this question depends on the steps we take. These are the steps I think we should take as individuals…
STEP 1: Acknowledge it’s human nature to stereotype
If I come across a bear in the woods I stereotype it as a dangerous beast, but maybe I looked at it wrong, maybe it was only a stuffed teddy bear. Humans generalize, but smart humans make more accurate generalizations and recognize when they’re generalizing.
STEP 2: Empathize with the stereotyper
I currently live in Vietnam where business owners and taxi drivers will try to overcharge me for things because they associate my skin color with wealth. I can get mad, but at the end of the day if I was in there shoes I’d do the same damn thing because like a lot of stereotypes it’s largely true. If you don’t like a stereotype don’t get mad at its accuracy get mad at the system that made it accurate.
Amanda: Hello sir.
Me: How do you know I’m a sir {looks at name tag}, Amanda?!
Amanda: Sorry, can I help you find something today?
Me: Ohhh, so you assume that I’m here to buy something? How do you know I have money? Maybe I’m a child waiting for his mommy? Or maybe I’m a homeless person looking to the generosity of a stranger?
Amanda: I’m going to have to ask you to leave.
Me: How do you know I’m capable of leaving? Maybe my catatonic disorder just kicked in {stands motionless}?
Amanda: {stares blankly}
STEP 3: Don’t primarily identify with your racial stereotype
I come from Irish and Italian descent. If you go to the U.S. those cultures are largely non-existent because when my Great Grandparents came to America they made an unconscious decision to let their culture die. They may not have personally adopted everything about American culture, but with every successive generation the old slowly gave way to the new. My grandparents may have identified as “Italian American”, but I simply identify as an “American.”
The Inevitability of the Dream…
We can cling to our ethnically defined cultures, but with time they will die. The harsh truth: integration means disintegration (I’ll elaborate on this cultural concept in a future post).
So you choose… cling to the past or embrace the future.
M.L.K. once said…
“I have a dream that one day little black boys and girls will be holding hands with little white boys and girls.”
But a more accurate dream of the future is that one day little mulatto boys will hold hands with little mulatto girls.
This is because… integration is spread by the penis over politics.
The world is morphing into one race. National Geographic says the future human in 2050 will look something like this…
My children’s skin will be darker and yours lighter. When we all have the same skin color — black won’t matter, white won’t matter, and only the content of our character (and maybe the number of our Medium followers) will truly matter.
Thanks for reading! Anthony Galli writes about the greats so that we may become great. Watch his series @ The Great Life.
