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Dr. King’s message is more important today than ever
By U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL)
January 18, 2021
Tampa Bay Times
The legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. carries special meaning today as our nation wrestles with the unthinkable acts carried about by a violent, conspiratorial mob opposed to foundational elements of our democracy. Dr. King understood that, in spite of the challenges America faces, the most patriotic thing we can do is “one day … rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed.”
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Governance in this country must be aimed at realizing these principles. As legislators, we are tasked with carrying forward Dr. King’s work and doing just that — securing justice, bringing about the common good and, in particular, preserving the essential dignity of the human soul. That dignity rests on three elements: access to a loving family and rich community; a nourishing faith that keeps us connected with God; and economic opportunity to provide for ourselves and others through safe, decent work.
At this moment, those ideals may seem quaint and even naive, but we cannot allow the most insidious actors — white supremacists, armed militia groups, and dangerous, conspiracy-driven groups like QAnon — to determine America’s future. Instead, that task falls to those of us who share Dr. King’s vision and pursuit of what he called the Beloved Community.
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And, in particular, policymakers must recognize that human dignity today is contingent on opportunity, especially when it comes to work. As Dr. King repeatedly noted, all forms of labor have dignity. That dignity cannot be reserved for those on Wall Street or in Silicon Valley. Fair wages, strong benefits, and general stability must be available to sanitation workers and metalworkers, teachers and cashiers alike.
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That process of deindustrialization has affected Americans all across the country. But as factories shut down in places like Chicago, Baltimore and Detroit, neighborhoods of color were among the hardest hit hard — right as they were beginning to feel the economic gains of the Civil Rights era. Realizing Dr. King’s vision of the Beloved Community will require recognizing the challenges facing America’s families, places of worship, and workers today and committing to substantive action to fix them.
Ultimately, we must remember that America is not a government, or a president, or a Congress. America is something much larger — something much more tangible and intimate. It is your family, your congregation, and your community. And this is what Dr. King understood so well: that our pursuit of a more perfect Union requires unity and recognizing the inherent dignity in all Americans in that endeavor.
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