Freedom Isn't Free

History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people.
Martin Luther King, Jr.


I can't imagine the 1950s and 1960s. It was a completely different world back then. Yes, I live in Eastern Kentucky. Yes, I am the majority here. I can probably remember the first time that I saw someone of another color or ethnicity. Some of the people in my hometown are not as open to racial relations as others. But can you imagine not being able to sit at a counter, or walk in a building, just because of the color of your skin? Of being ridiculed for something you have no control over? I can't imagine having to try to explain that to Caleb... yet that is the reality that many in the South had to face every day.

I know there are always two sides to every story and sometimes what makes it in the History books isn't really the way that it truly was. Yet sometimes, it doesn't depict it well enough. How can you describe the atrocities without experiencing them? Injustice is never right, no matter how one might rationalize it.

This quote makes me think. A whole generation stood by and let horrible things happen to good people. A whole generation of... good people doing bad things. And sometimes, the worst thing at all is to do nothing. To stand by and watch and not take action. As I think about this quote, it smacks me right in the face. No, I don't consider myself a racist, far from it. I'm not a bigot by any means. For the most part, I am a pretty compassionate person who cares for others and hates to see anyone suffer. But how many times have I just stood there? Not spoken up for the right thing? Not spoken against the wrong? You see, by being silent, I am just as guilty.

This issue goes far beyond just the Civil Rights movement. Today, injustice can still be seen based on the color of your skin, but it is also seen in gender, socioeconomic status, intelligence, and belief systems. I've always believed that one of our favorite ways to feel better about ourselves is to put others down. This results in injustice. It may not be as extreme as it was during the Civil Rights Movement, but it is injustice all the same. If we continue to remain silent, we are just as guilty as those who persecuted. We allow Martin Luther King Jr.'s message to be in vain. So my challenge to you is: be for the underdog. Love with your whole heart and be open to others, regardless of their circumstances. Believe in America as one nation under God, the land of opportunity, regardless of who you are. Speak for those who can not speak for themselves and be willing to help your neighbor. We may not be able to rid the world of injustice, but we can start in our own backyard.