Anonymous wrote:Just a minor vent:

I am listening to my 3rd grader’s class and the teacher is discussing Martin Luther King Jr. A lot of what she is saying is great, but she said that Martin Luther King was loved by the country and the world because he used peaceful means to protest.

This just isn’t true and it’s a myth I wish would go away. He was probably the least popular person in the country at the time. I am going to discuss this briefly with my child because I want him to know that doing the right thing is often unpopular.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2018/04/04/martin-luther-king-jr-50-years-assassination-donald-trump-disapproval-column/482242002/

That’s all, have a lovely long weekend.

School will never teach them the truth, they never told us about Juneteenth or the Oklahoma massacre or any of those events.
I think it’s prefect that you tell her the true about America .
Some people who quoted MLK are the same ones that think “All lives matter” and all that..

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would definitely put this into context. We celebrate MLK Jr and John Lewis but at the time authorities, law enforcement, politicians and a large segment of the white population hated them. They persevered despite the attacks and hatred. I think this is what we should be teaching our kids. Standing up for what they believe in the face of adversity and doing the right thing isn’t always easy or popular.

This and being willing to risk your life for others to have equality.

+1. He is loved today but was despised and hated in his day. That is what made his peaceful protest march even more impactful because in the face of hate she still marched and ultimately he paid for it with his life.

You all have a VERY VERY white point of view. MLK was very popular among black people and all others who were active in the Civil rights movement. He only was able to get 250,000 people to show up at the Lincoln Memorial.🤷🏾‍♀️

This! It’s like saying Gandhi was “unpopular” because the majority of British people hated him. Ignoring the fact that many (though not all) Indian idolized him! Why should we care what the white oppressors think about the non-white leaders of the oppressed?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just a minor vent:

I am listening to my 3rd grader’s class and the teacher is discussing Martin Luther King Jr. A lot of what she is saying is great, but she said that Martin Luther King was loved by the country and the world because he used peaceful means to protest.

This just isn’t true and it’s a myth I wish would go away. He was probably the least popular person in the country at the time. I am going to discuss this briefly with my child because I want him to know that doing the right thing is often unpopular.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2018/04/04/martin-luther-king-jr-50-years-assassination-donald-trump-disapproval-column/482242002/

That’s all, have a lovely long weekend.

"Popular"? To me, this seems like an odd word to use about someone like MLK -- as opposed to, say, a pop star. You also seem very certain that "this just isn't true and it's a myth". Perhaps a better, more nuanced, perspective would ask something more like: "Who respected and loved Dr. King -- and who did not? And what might account for these widely differing points of view? " No one is universally "popular" and advocating for the powerless is not likely to be "popular" among many of the powerful, but, I can assure you that many, many people loved, respected, and valued Dr. King during his life time. Many people read his books, listened to his sermons and speeches, risked their lives as they shared his faith in the justness of his cause, and some even had framed pictures of him alongside their family portraits.

Having said that, I do think your goal of having a discussion with your son is a good one.

I've been holding this back, but I have to say it: OP, do you actually know any actual Black people? How about any actual Black American people over 60 or so? While not everyone revered Dr. King during his lifetime, the idea that "he was probably the least popular person in the country at that time" is flat out wrong. I'm sure you know where I could go with this.....

Wishing you a lovely long weekend too.

I suppose it depends on your definition of popular. From the way I have heard it used in discussions about politicians and social justice groups and figures, it just means how favorable or unfavorable they are rated in the polls. At the time of his death, MLK had a very high unfavorable rating, whereas now his unfavorable rating is very low.

I have black friends, but no, none are over 60. I don’t know if this matters, but I do listen to Black Americans who are over 60, like MLK’s daughter, who said “ on’t act like everyone loved my father. He was assassinated. A 1967 poll reflected that he was one of the most hated men in America. Most hated. Many who quote him now and evoke him to deter justice today would likely hate, and may already hate, the authentic King.” I don’t know many white people over 60 (mostly just my parents and in-laws who were in their teens at the time of his death), and they all think Dr. King was great, but I don’t know what they thought of him at the time.

The talking points you bring up are good ones. I will share those with my son. Thank you.

Thanks for your detailed response OP. I'm very interested in your plan to discuss these issues with your son.

Something to think about: Dr. King was, as I've suggested, a very polarizing figure. If you're gauging "popularity" by things like polls and ratings, the chances are high that the polls, even "national polls" would not have included any/many Black people. If they did, it would often be explicitly stated, and used to compare the results with people in white communities -- which were viewed as the American norms in many publications, including scientific ones.

One project that might interest you: Pick a significant date -- such as the week of King's speech in Washington, or even the date of his death. Look at a few publications oriented towards a general (white) audience), like Time, Life, Newsweek, the Washington Post, The New York Times.... Then look at some Black owned publications such as Ebony, Jet, the Amsterdam News, the Afro.... I imagine that you'll be startled by both the contemporary reports and by the contrasts between the white owned publications (which at that time had few, if any, non-white writers) and the Black owned publications.

I certainly agree with Ms King's comment. In 1968, America was a very segregated country. The vast majority of politicians, police, news broadcasters and people in power were white and male, and had no interest in equality for Black Americans or even, in many cases, poor white Americans. So it's true that MLK was viciously hated by many. It's also true that he was very much respected and even loved by others, particularly in the Black communities. MLK's views and ideals were often contrasted with those of Malcolm X at the time, and those contrasts only added to the polarization.

I asked if you know any Black people over 60 or so because the world has changed a lot since MLK's lifetime. Someone younger and white might not even be aware of how segregation impacted things like polls and mainstream publications, or that there were (and are) Black owned publications, Black-oriented radio stations, and other sources of information that would not be reflected in things such as polls.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to think seriously about the issues that you have raised. I hope that you and your son are enjoying an informative and peaceful day.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think you are confusing controversy with lack of popularity.

He was a polarizing figure, a controversial figure. That doesn't mean he wasn't a very popular figure and extremely well-respected. You have a very skewed way of looking at famous people. Since his death, he has achieved the status of an icon. For you to go to the time and trouble of degrading that status is frankly a little weird. What is your agenda?

I’m just saying he wasn’t popular among the general public like he is today, using the word oikuakeith in the sense of having a high approval rating of the general public. This definition of popularity isn’t uncommon; google “popular public figure” and you will see the word used to mean “low favorability rating.”

I suppose my agenda, aside from teaching my son with historical accuracy, is just to show that pushes for civil rights are often controversial and unpopular in their day, and the civil rights efforts that seem radical today might be mainstream a generation from now. My son doesn’t actually understand that the causes he has marched for, like Black Lives Matter, are actually highly controversial and in some areas of the unpopular, and it’s time I correct that.

Wow, autocorrect fail.

oikuakeith = popular

Anonymous wrote:I think you are confusing controversy with lack of popularity.

He was a polarizing figure, a controversial figure. That doesn't mean he wasn't a very popular figure and extremely well-respected. You have a very skewed way of looking at famous people. Since his death, he has achieved the status of an icon. For you to go to the time and trouble of degrading that status is frankly a little weird. What is your agenda?

I’m just saying he wasn’t popular among the general public like he is today, using the word oikuakeith in the sense of having a high approval rating of the general public. This definition of popularity isn’t uncommon; google “popular public figure” and you will see the word used to mean “low favorability rating.”

I suppose my agenda, aside from teaching my son with historical accuracy, is just to show that pushes for civil rights are often controversial and unpopular in their day, and the civil rights efforts that seem radical today might be mainstream a generation from now. My son doesn’t actually understand that the causes he has marched for, like Black Lives Matter, are actually highly controversial and in some areas of the unpopular, and it’s time I correct that.