Martin Luther King Day

Martin Luther King would be 80 years old today. So, as modern life spans go, he could’ve lived to see the inauguration of Barack Obama. Though Obama minimized race during last year’s election, he’s well aware that he wouldn’t be on the verge of becoming our 44th president had it not been for Dr. King.

Last year, on Martin Luther King Day, I highlighted King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. This year, the speech he gave in Memphis on the eve of his assassination is appropriate. King seemed keenly aware that his life was destined to be short — that he would never get to 80.

“I don’t know what will happen now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead . . . . Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now . . . . [God's] allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people will get to the promised land.”

Though we’re on the edge of a historic moment — a moment of promise and hope — everything going on in today’s world seems to indicate we’re still a long way from the promised land. We are close to adding more employment legislation to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (one of King’s crowning achievements) than we’ve seen in a long time. Regardless of what employers, HR professionals, and employment lawyers think about this likely development, I imagine it would make Dr. King happy.

In any event, I sure hope that tomorrow, Dr. King is among the great crowd and cloud of witnesses to the Obama inauguration.