Secular sainthood enforced by hagiography
By Warner Todd Huston
On the national holiday that celebrates the birth of famed civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr., the AP reminds all that there was more to King than the popularized view of him affords. AP says that it is a shame that King has been “frozen in a moment in time that ignores the full complexity of the man and his message.” Who can disagree with this? After all, very often notable historical figures are turned into cardboard cartoons known for that one “frozen moment” in history that made them famous.
But, even as the AP argues that we should learn more about the whole of MLK’s life and take a more measured look at his life and works, the AP itself whitewashes several aspects of his real life. AP never mentions, for instance, his ties with communists nor do they mention Dr. King plagarized parts of his doctoral thesis. They don’t mention his support of the concept of http://www.wvwnews.net/story.php?id=2610 and quotas, an idea that strays from his acclaimed position of “equal” treatment. So, the AP may want us to avoid putting Dr. King “on a pedestal of perfection,” but it is also a fact that they only want us to know some of King’s real record instead of all of it as they claim.