January 17, 2011, Martin Luther King Jr day, and many memorialized Dr. King with tributes, quotes, parades, etc Which also inspired Oprah to look back over 25 yrs with the discussion of civil rights on her television series however she dissapointed many by using the word "race" in the title of her show. One thing that Dr. King was fighting to change was the conatation of the word 'race' as describing color to the actual denotation of it which is, a species. We are all one race, the human race and human beings created prejudice out of ignorance and ego. http://wisdomsgoldenrod.org/notebooks/8/4
Knowing this we must ask ourselves one question, have we learned anything? http://www.toptenz.net/10-things-you-can-learn-from-martin-luther-king-jr.phpSome may say yes, but many would say no. It seems to many that all we have done is change our target. If one studies history enough it can be postulated that human beings are a relatively shallow species when we are ego driven. All of the great people of history, like Dr. King, that have left us the great books and great wisdom have always suggested leaving the ego behind or learning to control the ego is the key to enjoying life. Human arrogance and elitist attitudes seem to have very few credentials necessary other than to be a great actor. Acting superior to any other human being is not only just ridiculous but is absolutely unnecessary to survival. Prejudice broken down is simply is judging before one is aware of facts or has done the research to support an opinion presenting it as fact. That said, it is logically impossible put together a prejudice view if one has actually done the research. Prejudice viewpoints are often presented with facts to decieve others into believing based on the obvious facts presented such as " Because the "frogs" robbed our business on Friday, it is obvious that all "frogs" are immoral creatures that cannot be trusted.
In 2010 our newest target of prejudices have been turned toward Hispanic immigrants and the LGBT community. We all seem to recall the African American struggle and feel strongly against judging someone based on their color. So we have decided that status of citizenship is worth our prejudice attitudes. Without gathering any information about the real politics involved in this issue, some assume these immigrants are not worth the same respect as citizens. With the LGBT community it seems this began a morality question of the behaviors. Religion or morality became the main topic when debating the rights of a human being that also happens to prefer same sex attractions over opposite sex attractions. Seeing all these new targets of prejudice have obviously answered the question of have we learned anything. The answer is yes, to not judge one based on their color, but instead their sexuality, their citizenship, their belief system.
Are we now in a new civil rights battle or a continuation of Dr. King's movement? It seems the newest movement is based more on removing judgements from our nature. If we learn to delete judgements, we could move further as a species to better developments.. Here are some possible ways you can challenge prejudice: http://www.wyde-angle.com/?p=1477
Advice: "It is always the right time to do the right thing." - Dr. Martin Luther King
Challenge your ego, challenge your beliefs, stand up for what is right.
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