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January 15, 2004
A tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
By MELVIN SYLVESTER
KMS&MW&H
History is indeed made up
of significant events which
shape our future and out
standing leaders who influ
ence our destiny.
Martin Luther King’s con
tributions to our history
place him in this inimitable
position. In his short life,
Martin Luther King was
instrumental in helping us
realize and rectify those
unspeakable flaws which
were tarnishing the name of
The Purpose of Education
By MARTIN L. KING JR.
1948, Morehouse Cafle
As 1 engage in the so
called “bull sessions”
around and about the
school, I too often find
that most college men have
a misconception of the
purpose of education.
Most of thé “brethren”
think that education
“1 have a dream that one day this
nation will rise up and live out the true
meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these
truths to be self-evident: that all men
are created equal.””
From the “I Have a Dream” speech, Aug. 28, 1963
INTERNATIONAL (/\) PAPER
America. The events which
took place in and around his
life were earth shattering, for
they represented an America
which was hostile and quite
different from America as we
see it today.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
catapulted to fame when he
came to the assistance of
Rosa Parks, the Mont
gomery, Alabama black
seamstress who refused to
give up her seat on a segre
gated Montgomery bus to a
white passenger. In those
days American blacks were
should equip them with
the proper instruments of
exploitation so that they
can forever trample over
the masses. Still others
think that education
should furnish them with
noble ends rather than
means to an end.
It seems to me that edu
cation has a two-fold func
tion to perform in the life
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confined to positions of sec
ond class citizenship by
restrictive laws and customs.
To break these laws would
mean subjugation and
humiliation by the police
and the legal system. Beat
ings, imprisonment and
sometimes death were wait
ing for those who defied the
System.
Black Americans needed a
Martin Luther King, but
above all America needed
him. The significant qualities
of this special man cannot be
underestimated nor taken for
of man and in society: the
one is utility and the other
is culture. Education must
enable 2 man to become
more efficient, to achieve
with increasing facility the
legitimate goals of his life.
Education must also
train one for quick, res
olute and effective think
ing. To think incisively and
to think for one’s self is
Augusta Mill
AUGUSTA FOCUS
granted. Within a span of 13
years from 1955 to his death
in 1968 he was able to
expound, expose, and extri
cate America from many
wrongs. His tactics of protest
involved non-violent passive
resistance to racial injustice.
It was the right prescription
for our country, and it was
right on time. Hope in
America was waning on the
part of many black Ameri
cans, but Martin Luther
King, Jr. provided a candle
along with a light. He also
provided this nation with a
very difficult. We are prone
to let our mental life
become invaded by legions
of half truths, prejudices,
and propaganda. At this
point, I often wonder
whether or not education is
fulfilling its purpose. A
great majority of the so
called educated people do
not think logically and sci
entifically. Even the press,
the classroom, the plat
form, and the pulpit in
many instances do not give
us objective and unbiased
truths. To save man from
the morass of propaganda,
in my opinion, is one of
the chief aims of educa
tion. Education must
enable one to sift and
weigh evidence, to discern
the true from the false, the
real from the unreal, and
the facts from the fiction.
road map so that all people
could locate and share
together in the abundance of
this great democracy.
We honor Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr. because he
showed us the way to mend
those broken fences and to
move on in building this
land rather than destroying
it. He led campaign after
campaign in the streets of
America and on to the gover
nor’s mansion — even to the
White House — in an effort
to secure change. Today
black Americans have federal
The function of educa
tion, therefore, is to teach
one to think intensively
and to think critically. But
education which stops with
efficiency may prove the
greatest menace to society.
The most dangerous crimi
nal may be the man gifted
with reason, but with no
morals.
The late Eugene Tal
madge, in my opinion,
possessed one of the better
minds of Georgia, or even
America. Moreover, he
wore the Phi Beta Kappa
key. By all measuring rods,
Mr. Talmadge could think
critically and intensively;
yet he contends that I am
an inferior being. Are those
the types of men we call
educated?
We must remember that
intelligence is not enough.
legislation which provide§
access and legal protection int
the areas of public accoms
modations, housing, voting
rights, schools, and trans:
portation. These rights were
not easily won, nor readily
accepted, but the good will
and conscience of an enors
mous spectrum of our socie:
ty both black and white said
“Move On.”
Thank you Dr. King for
being the drum major who
was able and ready to lead
our nation to greater heights
through love and peace.
Intelligence plus character
— that is the goal of true
education. The complete
education gives one not
only power of concentra
tion, but worthy objectives
upon which to concen
trate. The broad education
will, therefore, transmit to
one not only the accumu
lated knowledge of the race
but also the accumulated
experience of social living.
If we are not careful, our
colleges will produce a
group of close-minded,
unscientific, illogical pro
pagandists, consumed with
immoral acts. Be careful,
“brethren!” Be careful,
teachers!
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