The wisdom of Martin Luther King Jr.: Any application to Zambia

By Munyonzwe Hamalengwa, PhD

Martin Luther King Jr.

One of the beauties of reading other people’s writings is to get nuggets of wisdom here and there, in hope of making oneself or the country better. Sometimes we get wisdom as how not to do or say certain things. As one reads sometimes one asks himself or herself, “how did that person think about this great or silly idea?” My insertion of commentaries is supposed to be humorous, an attempt at applying the wisdom I have just picked up from the selected quotations.

January 18th, 2016 was the Holiday bestowed to Martin Luther King Jr. in the United States. I have extracted some of his wisdom in this limited collection. I may put in {brackets} what I think applies to Zambia:

“We must rapidly begin the shift from a “thing-oriented” society to a “person-oriented” society. When machines and computers, profit motives and property rights are considered more important than people, the giant triples of racism,{tribalism} materialism, and militarism are incapable of being conquered.

“This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism.” If the ruling-class did not respond to the urgency of the moment, King declared that “there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Black Race { marginalized tribe if any} is granted their citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.”

We all too often have socialism {Zambian Tax Payer-Paid Corruption for the Ruling Class} for the rich…and rugged free market capitalism for the {Zambian} poor.”

“Capitalism {Tribalism} fails to realize that life is social. Communism {Tribalism} fails to realize that life is personal. The good and just society is…a socially conscious democracy which reconciles the truths of individualism and collectivism.”

“Curtailment of free speech {in Zambia} is rationalized on grounds that a more compelling American {Zambian} tradition forbids criticism of the government when the nation {ruling party} is at war {election time}… Nothing can be more destructive of our fundamental democratic traditions than the vicious effort to silence dissenters {the opposition}.”

“The ultimate measure of a man {or woman} is not where he {she} stands in moments of comfort and convenience {when in government}, but where he stands at times of challenge {election} and controversy {campaigning}”.

“History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition{election} was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people{who know better}.”

“He who passively accepts evil {corruption or rigging}} is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil {corruption or rigging} without protesting against it, is really cooperating with it.” {Point understood Martin, but not necessarily}

I must confess that over the past five years I have been gravely disappointed by the white moderate {tribalist}. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Black’s {Zambian’s} great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen’s Counciler {ordinary Zambian} or the Ku Klux Klanner {corrupt elements}, but the white moderate,{government tribalist} who is more devoted to “order”{blindness to his doings} than to justice{One Zambia, One Nation}; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: “I agree with you in the {fight against tribalism} goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct actions” {that tribalism be abolished}; who paternalistically believes he can set the timeline for another man’s freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Black {victims of corruption, tribalism and poverty} to wait for a “more convenient season” {after he has won the election with the use of tribalism}.” Shallow understanding from the{Zambian} people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from {tribalistic} people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance {of tribalism} is much more bewildering than outright rejection” {of tribalism, corruption and nepotism}

“Been a lot of applauding {of our silence against corruption and tribalism} over the last few years. They applauded our total movement {silence}; they’ve applauded me {for not resisting}”

“ America {Zambia} and most of its newspapers applauded me {the opposition} in Montgomery {Ndola}. And I stood before thousands of Blacks {Zambians} getting ready to riot when my home {I was detained in a radio station} was bombed and said, “We can’t do it this way.” They applauded us in the sit-in movement {when we boycotted parliament}–we non-violently decided to sit in at lunch counters {outside}. The applauded us on the Freedom Rides {outside the radio stations} when we accepted blows without retaliation. They praised us in Albany {Mansa} and Birmingham {Kitwe} and Selma {Chinsali}, Alabama {Muchinga}. Oh, the press was so noble in its applause, and so noble in its praise when I was saying, “Be non-violent toward Bull Connor{the politicians in the ruling party}”; when I was saying, “Be non-violent toward [Selma, Alabama segregationist sheriff] Jim Clark”{ the politicians in the ruling party}. There’s something strangely inconsistent about a nation and a press that will praise you when you say, “Be non-violent toward Jim Clark”{the politicians in the ruling party} but will curse and damn you when you say, “Be non-violent toward little brown Vietnamese children” {the opposition}. There’s something wrong with that press”{which is supposed to be in the public trust but has been hijacked by the powers-that-be}.

“And one day we must ask the question, Why are there forty {thirteen} million poor people in America {Zambia}? … When you ask that question, you begin to question the capitalistic {present} economy. And I’m simply saying that more and more, we’ve got to begin to ask questions about the whole society. We are called upon to help the discouraged beggars in life’s marketplace. But one day we must come to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring. It means that questions must be raised. You see, my friends, when you deal with this, you begin to ask the question, Who owns the oil {Zambia}? You begin to ask the question, Who owns the iron ore {copper}? You begin to ask the question, Why is it that people have to pay water bills in a world that is two-thirds water?”

Dr. Munyonzwe Hamalengwa practiced law in Canada for twenty five years.