Today I celebrate the true Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Radical Peacemaker and Truth Teller

If you want to celebrate the real Dr. King, I challenge you to spend an hour today listening to what I feel is his greatest speech. "Beyond Vietnam" is the most unbelievably honest assessment of the United States government's policies in regards to war and its effect on poor people and the values of a nation that unquestioningly supports it.

He predicts, fairly accurately, conflicts around the world going forward. Much of this speech is as applicable to and resonates with the current War on Terror. He lays out how war ultimately is a war on the poor and needy at home as well as those in far off lands. He calls for a radical revolution of values, one that is still needed today. Ultimately he ties the evils of racism, militarism and extreme materialism together and calls people to explore their conscience and be morally consistent.

His words are as applicable today as they were 50 years ago. After this speech he was almost universally vilified by the press, politicians and even of civil rights movements. His approval ratings sank even with his own community. One year later to the day he would be assassinated.

Below is a link to the speech in both audio and text form.

http://kingencyclopedia.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/documentsentry/doc_beyond_vietnam/

Tavis Smiley also does a great report, link below, on this speech and the people who helped craft the positions and speech. They give amazing insight into the truth of the man.

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/tavissmiley/tsr/mlk-a-call-to-conscience/