America is poised to celebrate the 96th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birth on Monday, January 20, 2025. (Actually, Dr. King’s birthday is January 15th, but it is celebrated on the 20th). Dr King’s birthday is the first national holiday celebrating an African American in the United States.
Dr King, as many people know, was a dynamic advocate for Civil Rights and the Black community. Basically, he emerged as the conscience of America and for humanity as a whole. He was the consummate humanitarian, and his campaign ultimately revealed the need for America to be better – to honor the tenets of Christian love. Yet, even though this was the case, he was brutally assassinated by persons unknown on April 4, 1968.
Interestingly, Dr. King’s 96th birthday holiday is not the only thing happening on January 20, 2025. President-elect Donald J. Trump will assume the office of President of the United States on that date. This is one of the most anticipated, or dreaded events, depending upon which side you’re on, to take place in America in years. It is the first time that a president has been elected with 34 felony convictions!
Donald J. Trump is the polar opposite of Dr. King, the peace advocate. Trump does not come off as a humanitarian of any stripe and frequently displays combative and irrational behavior. Regarding his felony convictions, Trump insists that he has done nothing wrong even though he was officially found guilty of the charges. The verdict basically let him off the hook since he won’t spend time in prison.
Most Americans, if asked, would probably prefer that our leaders be as squeaky clean as possible. Actually, since our politicians are not all angels, there is no doubt that some of them have had questionable items in their personality closets. But Trump, a convicted felon, stands out among them.
The truth of the matter is that the ascension of the first felony president has generated a cloud that has caused enduring damage to the public perception of America’s justice system. It sets a very bad example for others in our society who have broken the law but have had to serve hard time. Trump will not have to spend time in prison and he has gotten away with breaking the law with a mere slap on the wrist.
What makes this particularly unfair is that there are felons across America who are denied the right to vote because of their felony convictions. This is a very uneven situation, and some folks say, “What is good for the goose is good for the gander.” In other words, if Trump can get away with high-profile crimes, rank-and-file felons should at least be able to vote!
Trump’s behavior has been despicable on a number of levels. In addition to the 34 felony counts that he is charged with, there are numerous others that have not even been brought to trial. And we can’t forget that he basically led an insurrection against our government several years ago.
Donald Trump’s presidency will probably follow us for years and have dire consequences for the well-being of our country. Trump, a climate change “ignorer,” took us out of the Paris Climate Accord during his last term, and it’s possible that the devastating fires currently raging in California are most likely a result of ignored climate change. These incidents can only get worse if they are not taken seriously and addressed by our government.
Trump is apparently interested in unbridled power and of joining an international “pissing contest” with other authoritarian leaders around the globe. Unlike Dr. King, he is interested in conquest; he wants to take over the Panama Canal and he also wants to annex Canada and Greenland.
Basically, Donald Trump is exhibiting behavior that does not make America “look great again;” it is, instead, generating embarrassment. The policies that have his interest do not bode well for his followers, for Americans as a whole, and especially for Black Americans. He is an anomaly in American politics and serves as a harbinger of the decline of America. He is threatening to take America back to the dark ages, which will adversely impact everyone. This is what we get when we elect a person of very questionable character to lead us.
With this said, we need Dr. King’s help today! His ideas are the ones that we need to shift the consciousness of Americans back to, reminding them of the great socioeconomic potential that a multicultural national body promises, promises that can help America move forward in a positive manner. Unfortunately, he is not here to help; we have Trump instead.
Though Dr. King is no longer among us, we can use the contents of his Civil Rights playbook; we need to organize in order to minimize the damage that this new administration has promised to do to America. Moreover, we need to work to ensure that our leaders are the role models that we need. Donald Trump is a disaster in this regard. He should not be able to get away with wrongdoing while others are harshly sentenced for crimes that are not even as serious as the ones that he has committed. At the very least, if he can become president, felons should be able to vote!
Dr. King’s demise should not be in vain; we need to use his ideas to bring together Americans of like minds in order to make America the promised land that he envisioned. We are not interested in going back to the past – we should have our eyes fastened on the future! After all, Dr. King said, “We, the people, will get to the promised land.” He foresaw a unified America in our future. We can make this a reality if we work together to oppose the oppressive machinations of Donald Trump and his acolytes. Let’s do this! Aluta continua.