Bringing Americans together with MLK’s dream

The U.S. has a proven ability to overcome in times of crisis when we call Americans together around a common national vision. This tradition goes back to the origin of our nation, when the 13 colonies overcame their political and social divisions to secure freedom for future generations of Americans.

In the following decades Americans overspread a vast continent. They reunited a badly divided nation after a terrible civil war. They endured and won two devastating world wars. And they finally addressed the country’s legacy of slavery and racism.

Our divisions appear to be equally great today. Only by working together can rising generations revive and expand the American dream. The best person to provide inspiration and wisdom for that task is the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The two of us look very different. One is white, one is black. One is a minister, the other is an attorney and professor. One made a career in human rights education, and the other served in the military.

However, we have much more in common. To start, we are both Americans, benefiting from this nation’s enormous opportunities, yet burdened by its tragic history of racism and violence. We both grew up in poverty, one in Baltimore, the other in New York City’s Spanish Harlem. We both witnessed and endured injustice.

In different circumstances we both found God, who we came to see as the only answer. In this way we gained transcendent understanding of and support for our lives. Only by looking beyond themselves can imperfect human beings live and thrive together.

Our faith, and consequent search for answers in others, led us to see King as a source of wisdom, guidance, and healing in our personal lives. We came to understand that his teachings can act as a source of wisdom, guidance, and healing for our nation as well. His wisdom well served Americans decades ago during the struggle for civil rights. His guidance is equally needed today.

The forces of division surround us, pulling us apart at every turn. Most of us say we want peace, but we live in violent times. Many cities have seen a surge in crime. Even more base was the assault on the Capitol, an attack on the very foundation of democracy, the peaceful transfer of power.

Pessimists wonder if America can hold together. Racists and other hatemongers are at work, shooting down churchgoers in Charleston, S.C. and shoppers in Buffalo in hope of triggering a race war. What will happen with another mass killing, police murder, destructive riot, contested election, or illegal power grab?

There is no simple answer to “the American crisis,” as Thomas Paine termed the challenge in 1776. However, King’s philosophy, rooted in the Gospel, provides a solid foundation for an American revival. He called the country to embrace the philosophy that animated the nation’s founders. All men (and women) are created equal, and enjoy the God-given rights of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

He lived out these great moral truths and died fighting for them. With the recent 60th anniversary of King’s immortal “I have a dream” speech, it is far past time for us to implement his principles.

To that end, we are determined to help identify new leaders and raise an entire generation of young people to promote his philosophy and pursue non-violent social change. An important part of this educational program is the annual “Share the Dream Sunday” initiative that will encourage churches to teach King’s principles, starting on the Sunday before the MLK Holiday.

America desperately needs moral leadership. King and other civil rights leaders demonstrated extraordinary courage in difficult times. Like the signers of the Declaration of Independence, they pledged their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor. So must we.

Just as members of the faith community gave life and vigor to the Civil Rights movement, so must churches, synagogues, and temples step forward today to help lead America out of the present darkness. Saving America may become the most important moral test of our time.

In another challenging time, King called on Americans to embrace the dignity, liberty, and equality of all. We must repeat that challenge to those unfamiliar with him and the world that he did so much to change. His dream must remain our dream.

Barry Black is chaplain of the U.S. Senate and former U.S. Navy Chief of Chaplains. Matthew Daniels is chair of Law and Human Rights at the Institute of World Politics and the co-author of the Share the Dream series.