Martin Luther King Day 2017

It's a shame that MLK Day is getting drowned out by all the noise surrounding the incoming Presidency...  But then I guess it's fitting that, with all that going on, it gives us time to reflect on what King accomplished and how much more still needs to be accomplished as far as civil rights go.  I often wonder what Dr. King would think if he lived to see these days; and I wonder if we would've made more progress had he not been gunned down.  Did evil triumph that day and is it still winning in the United States?

I'm obviously not Black, but I do recognize the sacrifices African-Americans made (and continue to make) on the behalf of many people of color.  While Asian-Americans have been victims of prejudice, we've also been (wrongly) seen as the "Model Minority" and have often just sat in the background watching the evolution of race relations in America.  Too often, we've just stayed within our communities and kept our heads down.  Thankfully, I'm a 3rd or 4th generation Asian who grew up in the Richmond school district; and was raised by an administrator in the Berkeley school district.  My parents also always let me know that I would be treated the same as my brother (this isn't always the case with traditional Asian families), and that I had a voice.  In short, I was raised to speak up if I ever thought I was witnessing an injustice.

I see Colin Kaepernick getting pounded because he takes a knee during the national anthem.  I see people criticizing the Black Lives Matter because they speak out against the needless abuse and/or murder of unarmed Black citizens.  And I hear people complaining because there's a Women's March on Saturday, and people don't want "their" tax dollars to go towards policing the events.  Well, guess what - those are OUR tax dollars too.  Everybody has the right to free speech and peaceful protest - whether it's the athlete, movie star, working mom or dad, etc.  Of course it saddens and scares me when I see protests get violent or dangerous... but I can't let that deter me from speaking up or demonstrating when I feel it's right.

Free speech and the right to protest go both ways though.  So while I hear people complain about me demonstrating, I also recognize they have the right to complain (just as I'm sure they did during the Civil Rights Movement).  I'll just have to drown out that noise.