It was thanks to people like him, who had the courage to act on their convictions, to stand up for what is right, no matter the consequences, who sacrificed everything they had for the hope of something better, it’s thanks to them that the faces of my children register nothing but confusion when I explain to them that 50 years ago in this country they would not have been allowed to play with at least half of their friends. They would not have lived in the same places, they would not have shared toys, food, and water bottles. (Sometimes, when I’m not looking.)
They don’t understand why the two friends whose marriage we are celebrating next weekend would not have been allowed to marry. They are baffled by the thought that people would hate another so much because of their skin color that they would kill them.
We should never take such things for granted I thought. We should always remember the sacrifice of those brave men and women who changed things.
And yet, because of them my children do take it for granted, which, in a way, is as it always should have been in the first place.
I hope they will be inspired to have the courage of their own convictions, and right other wrongs that they see in the world around them.
One thought on “A post afterall-Martin Luther King Jr. Day”
Isn’t it wonderful? 🙂 I watched “Hairspray” with my daughter the other day, and she just couldn’t understand how people could be treated that way, and of course the stuff you see in the movie is NOTHING compared to what these people had to go through on a daily basis.
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