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“A riot is the unheard” is a quote you will hear quite a bit, but that quote was not Martin Luther King Jr. expressing support for riots. Indeed, he makes it clear in his remarks that he condemns them, but he makes it clear that the riots are a symptom of a much larger problem.
This is going to be a long thread.
The quote itself comes from a larger speech, entitled “The Other America” which was delivered at Grosse Point High School on March 14, 1968. That’s less than a month before King was assassinated.
That speech was not just about racism, but also about income inequality and how there are two Americas: one that is prosperous and the other that is built on that prosperity. It is one of his finest speeches. You can read the complete text here: https://www.gphistorical.org/mlk/mlkspeech/
MLK does not mix his words when he concludes that riots do not work. “I'm absolutely convinced that a riot merely intensifies the fears of the white community while relieving the guilt.”
He follows that, however: “But it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society.”
“These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative than to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard. And what is it America has failed to hear?”
“It has failed to hear that the plight of the negro poor has worsened over the last twelve or fifteen years. It has failed to hear that the promises of freedom and justice have not been met.”
“And it has failed to hear that large segments of white society are more concerned about tranquility and the status quo than about justice and humanity.”
It is not enough to say that these people are unheard—we must also understand what they are saying and why they are saying it.
And how they are more than just unheard. You cannot say you support peaceful protests while at the same time think it is acceptable Colin Kaepernick was driven from the NFL.
You cannot support peaceful protests but blast the cast of Hamilton for speaking directly to power when it is in their audience.
You cannot support peaceful protests but complain about any inconvenience you experience as a result of those protests. And yet, alas, that is where we find ourselves.
The truth is the “white moderate” does not support peaceful protests. When they say that, what they mean is that they want a protest they can ignore. Conservatives take advantage by making sure they are outraged by any form of peaceful protest when they don’t like the message.
They do not want justice, they want order. They do not want peace, they want tranquility. And they will listen to people who will promise the later at the expense of the former, because they are not victims of the lack of justice or peace, so they cannot understand those who are.
If you listen to the protesters this time around, they will not be satisfied with reforms. They’re not demanding body cams, because they’ve found that bad cops will always find ways to avoid accountability and so-called “good cops” will tolerate this out of fear of ostracization.
But no one is listening, not really. People are angry, but that anger is not focused. But you know what is focused? And effort by the right to ensure that their supporters will dismiss and hate the protesters.
Even now, we have heard reports of far-right groups infiltrating the protests and instigating violence. Can that explain it all? Probably not, there is too much raw anger there to be entirely the result of infiltrators and provocateurs.
The solutions escape me. The problems are diverse and intertwined in a ball akin to the Gordian knot. But with two ends of the rope each being tugged in opposite directions by warring factions, which only tightens the knot further.
What can we do but listen?
Langston Hughes:
What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore—
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over—
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore—
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over—
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
Thank you.
