Beyond Vietnam2 in that . Carson and Shepard, 2001. We must move past indecision to action. Take immediate steps to prevent other battlegrounds in Southeast Asia by curtailing our military buildup in Thailand and our interference in Laos. So he was no longer on that particular list. (Scott) King,My Life with Martin Luther King, Jr., 1969. 0000002964 00000 n Q%F70%iR! What then can I say to the Vietcong or to Castro or to Mao as a faithful minister of this one? These are the times for real choices and not false ones. Hanoi remembers how our leaders refused to tell us the truth about the earlier North Vietnamese overtures for peace, how the president claimed that none existed when they had clearly been made. This Hindu-Moslem-Christian-Jewish-Buddhist belief about ultimate reality is beautifully summed up in the first epistle of Saint John: Let us love one another; for love is God and everyone that loveth is born of God and knoweth God. Keep in mind now that 1967, Neal, as you know, is the same year that Muhammad Ali, the world champion, decides to not accept that draft to go and fight in Vietnam. To me the relationship of this ministry to the making of peace is so obvious that I sometimes marvel at those who ask me why I am speaking against the war. The New York Times calls it wasteful and self-defeating. "[14] He knows the bombing and shelling and mining we are doing are part of traditional pre-invasion strategy. And secondly, so many civil rights leaders were opposed to him giving it because LBJ had been the best president to black people on civil rights. Is it among these voiceless ones? He rarely gave speeches from a text. Their questions hit home, and I knew that I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today my own government. In the north, where our bombs now pummel the land, and our mines endanger the waterways, we are met by a deep but understandable mistrust. Tonight, however, I wish not to speak with Hanoi and the NLF, but rather to my fellow Americans, who, with me, bear the greatest responsibility in ending a conflict that has exacted a heavy price on both continents. In Martin Luther King Jr.'s Vietnam speech, lines 413-416, he repeats the phrase "this is not just" (161). Copy of full text of the "Beyond Vietnam" speech. Indeed, their questions suggest that they do not know the world in which they live. Martin Luther King Jr - n/a - Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King [citation needed] Content [ edit] Mr. SMILEY: Well, I think the question is whether or not - I hear your point, Neal, and I take it. At what cost? 0000001700 00000 n King Scores Poverty). CONAN: "MLK: A Call to Conscience" premieres on PBS tomorrow night. When the Rev. In that address, he articulated his reasons for his opposition to the Southeast Asian conflict. Speeches, writings, movements, and protests, Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War, Spring Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam. Some of us who have already begun to break the silence of the night have found that the calling to speak is often a vocation of agony, but we must speak. Robert B. Semple, Jr., Dr. 0000030467 00000 n %PDF-1.3 % Could it be that they do not know that the good news was meant for all men for Communist and capitalist, for their children and ours, for black and for white, for revolutionary and conservative? Martin Luther King, Jr. utilizes figurative to emphasize the inhumanity and immorality of the war. And what really got him to the point of figuring that he really, really had to address this again back to the children, he couldn't say to young folks in this country who were being denied, that they should engage nonviolence as a philosophy when he saw the children, when he saw these pictures of these Vietnamese children being bombed and the impact - the effect that napalm was having on their bodies. And we must rejoice as well, for surely this is the first time in our nations history that a significant number of its religious leaders have chosen to move beyond the prophesying of smooth patriotism to the high grounds of a firm dissent based upon the mandates of conscience and the reading of history. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.: I speak as a child of God and brother to the suffering poor of Vietnam. 0000002516 00000 n Even though they quoted the American Declaration of Independence in their own document of freedom, we refused to recognize them. CONAN: We (unintelligible) to see it. Less than two weeks after leading his first Vietnam demonstration, on 4 April 1967, King made his best known and most comprehensive statement against the war. 0000003996 00000 n This I believe to be the privilege and the burden of all of us who deem ourselves bound by allegiances and loyalties which are broader and deeper than nationalism and which go beyond our nations self-defined goals and positions. So practically everybody was opposed to him giving this speech. Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305. CONAN: Well, take us back to 1967. But Carson makes a powerful point in the special that you just identified, about whether or not Martin King himself would be welcome in some of these mega-churches, at certain political gatherings. That Vietnam was a mistake. And we are spending money for a war abroad that ought to be spent for the war on poverty here at home. 0000003503 00000 n How do they judge us when our officials know that their membership is less than twenty-five percent Communist and yet insist on giving them the blanket name? When I speak of love I am not speaking of some sentimental and weak response. Is our nation planning to build on political myth again and then shore it up with the power of new violence? "[9] He stated that North Vietnam "did not begin to send in any large number of supplies or men until American forces had arrived in the tens of thousands", and accused the U.S. of having killed a million Vietnamese, "mostly children. Paul A. Schuette, King Preaches on Non-Violence at Police-Guarded Howard Hall, Washington Post, 3 March 1965. At this point I should make it clear that while I have tried in these last few minutes to give a voice to the voiceless on Vietnam and to understand the arguments of those who are called enemy, I am as deeply concerned about our troops there as anything else. MLK: Beyond Vietnam - A Time to Break Silence - YouTube They will be concerned about Mozambique and South Africa. Excuse me. Could we blame them for such thoughts? So 60 year(ph) is really, really a hot year here around this particular issue. Perhaps the more tragic recognition of reality took place when it became clear to me that the war was doing far more than devastating the hopes of the poor at home. 20072023 Blackpast.org. JwNt YHiA:{p . Dr. King is trying to get the point across that our country is being unfair to others. I could not be silent in the face of such cruel manipulation of the poor. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. If we do not act we shall surely be dragged down the long dark and shameful corridors of time reserved for those who possess power without compassion, might without morality, and strength without sight. Even when pressed by the demands of inner truth, men do not easily assume the task of opposing their governments policy, especially in time of war. As we all know, Neal, before he died, Robert McNamara, the Defense secretary that had Walt and others over in Vietnam, before he died, of course, announced that he was wrong. Mr. SMILEY: That's right. [6] At the urging of people such as SCLC's former Director of Direct Action and now the head of the Spring Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam, James Bevel, and inspired by the outspokenness of Muhammad Ali,[7] King eventually agreed to publicly oppose the war as opposition was growing among the American public. 0000009147 00000 n 0000009168 00000 n n the one hand we are called to play the good Samaritan on lifes roadside; but that will be only an initial act. But the entire speech, of course, thankfully, was recorded on audio. BlackPast.org is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and our EIN is 26-1625373. And I can't tell young black men, who are being denied right here in the streets of America, that they should offer themselves up and to sign themselves up to go - to do harm to people around the world who they do not know. What of the National Liberation Front that strangely anonymous group we call VC or Communists? Instead, we decided to support France in its reconquest of her former colony. America, the richest and most powerful nation in the world, can well lead the way in this revolution of values. When Diem was overthrown they may have been happy, but the long line of military dictatorships seemed to offer no real changeespecially in terms of their need for land and peace. King to Weigh Civil Disobedience If War Intensifies, New York Times, 2 April 1967. Now they languish under our bombs and consider us not their fellow Vietnamese the real enemy. They were led by Ho Chi Minh. Check your local listings. Rev. Fifty-years ago in April 1967, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., delivered one of his most memorable, if not controversial sermons, at Riverside Church just steps away from the Columbia University campus. Therefore the first hope in our inventory must be the hope that love is going to have the last word.. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. - Zinn Education Project The authoritative record of NPRs programming is the audio record. This speech is not addressed to Hanoi or to the National Liberation Front. (1967) Martin Luther King, Jr., "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence" I have tried to offer them my deepest compassion while maintaining my conviction that social change comes most meaningfully through nonviolent action. 0000011068 00000 n A few other Americans know, of course, the "Mountaintop" speech given the night before he's assassinated in Memphis. He criticized the Vietnam War and praised Muhammad Ali for being a conscientious objector. Our government felt then that the Vietnamese people were not ready for independence, and we again fell victim to the deadly Western arrogance that has poisoned the international atmosphere for so long. Undeterred, King, Spock, and Harry Belafonte led 10,000 demonstrators on an anti-war march to the United Nations on 15 April 1967. The situation is one in which we must be ready to turn sharply from our present ways. The march was organized by the Spring Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam and initiated by its chairman, James Bevel. We had to do a whole lot of work in the booth trying to get that audio right. Sorry, I'm a little bit emotional here. That's the problem with it. . Attachment 2: Definitions Attachment 3: King Opposed Vietnam War; We Must Oppose US War in Iraq. hide caption. I feel that Martin Luther King and Muhammad Ali are two of the, you know, greatest Americans we've ever had. We may cry out desperately for time to pause in her passage, but time is deaf to every plea and rushes on. And when you see the piece on "Lens" tonight that's the part of the speech that set off so many of those who are in King's inner circle, so many scholars who have written about King. [citation needed]. The only change came from America as we increased our troop commitments in support of governments which were singularly corrupt, inept and without popular support. I would like to see the fervor of the civil-rights movement imbued into the peace movement to instill it with greater strength. The Institute cannot give permission to use or reproduce any of the writings, statements, or images of Martin Luther King, Jr. I've Been to the Mountaintop - Wikipedia There are people who have come to see the moral imperative of equality, but who cannot yet see the moral imperative of world brotherhood. During the past ten years we have seen emerge a pattern of suppression which now has justified the presence of U.S. military advisors in Venezuela. Surely we must see that the men we supported pressed them to their violence. 39 0 obj << /Linearized 1 /O 44 /H [ 1739 286 ] /L 149455 /E 105346 /N 8 /T 148557 >> endobj xref 39 54 0000000016 00000 n We will be marching for these and a dozen other names and attending rallies without end unless there is a significant and profound change in American life and policy. So Martin's advisors basically said, if you are intent on giving the speech, at least allow us to craft a speech and to create a setting that will allow you to speak to clergy members and laity so at least before you get to this rally that we know is going to be controversial, we could at least roll this thing out with a different kind of a crowd. dH(*b(jGB@'k1zTR~{dA9|\b. There is at the outset a very obvious and almost facile connection between the war in Vietnam and the struggle I, and others, have been waging in America. Martin Luther King's Acceptance Speech, on the occasion of the award of the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, 10 December 1964 Your Majesty, Your Royal Highness, Mr. President, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen: In December 1966, testifying before a congressional subcommittee on budget priorities, King argued for a rebalancing of fiscal priorities away from Americas obsession with Vietnam and toward greater support for anti-poverty programs at home (Semple, Dr. His speech appears below. These are days which demand wise restraint and calm reasonableness. Moreover I would encourage all ministers of draft age to give up their ministerial exemptions and seek status as conscientious objectors. As Arnold Toynbee says : Love is the ultimate force that makes for the saving choice of life and good against the damning choice of death and evil. Dr. CONAN: Indeed, it was Oslo. One of the things, I hope, Neal, will happen here is that when people get a chance to see the special, they will be moved - I think they will be - to Google or Bing, whatever search engine you use, to go online, because the speech is so readily available, Neal, as you know. So this was a huge, huge speech that got Martin King in more trouble than anything he had ever said or done. To speak for them is to explain this lack of confidence in Western words, and especially their distrust of American intentions now. I speak for those whose land is being laid waste, whose homes are being destroyed, whose. A true revolution of values will soon look uneasily on the glaring contrast of poverty and wealth. Thank you. The recent statement of your executive committee are the sentiments of my own heart and I found myself in full accord when I read its opening lines: A time comes when silence is betrayal. That time has come for us in relation to Vietnam. capitalism, and the Vietnam War. A few years ago there was a shining moment in that. But what I want - I think the question - I've always thought that Dr. King, that that speech about Vietnam was his best speech in my mind. The choice is ours, and though we might prefer it otherwise we must choose in this crucial moment of human history. 0000010534 00000 n While they both may have justifiable reason to be suspicious of the good faith of the United States, life and history give eloquent testimony to the fact that conflicts are never resolved without trustful give and take on both sides. Over the bleached bones and jumbled residue of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words: Too late. There is an invisible book of life that faithfully records our vigilance or our neglect. Dr. King in a March 25, 1967 antiwar march in Chicago. 0000002004 00000 n Legendary civil rights leader Rev. 2. (AFP via Getty Images) "Why are you speaking about the war, Dr. King? Mr. SMILEY: Indeed he did, Neal. All over the globe men are revolting against old systems of exploitation and oppression and out of the wombs of a frail world new systems of justice and equality are being born. In 1967, in the shadows of Columbia, Dr. King shifted the world again. The peasants watched and cringed as Diem ruthlessly routed out all opposition, supported their extortionist landlords and refused even to discuss reunification with the north. But two, to the audio, there are only less than 10 minutes of this speech that got covered. He turned that into a great speech when he got out of the hospital. We were taking the black young men who had been crippled by our society and sending them eight thousand miles away to guarantee liberties in Southeast Asia which they had not found in southwest Georgia and East Harlem. We're talking with Tavis Smiley. 0000004855 00000 n Five years ago he said, Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.. It demands that we admit that we have been wrong from the beginning of our adventure in Vietnam, that we have been detrimental to the life of the Vietnamese people. As that noble bard of yesterday, James Russell Lowell, eloquently stated: Once to every man and nation Comes the moment to decide, In the strife of truth and falsehood, For the good or evil side; Some great cause, Gods new Messiah, Offring each the bloom or blight, And the choice goes by forever Twixt that darkness and that light. 0000047501 00000 n President Obama, this is one campaign promise that he has kept. It is curious that the Americans, who calculate so carefully on the possibilities of military victory, do not realize that in the process they are incurring deep psychological and political defeat. "[22] They wander into the towns and see thousands of the children, homeless, without clothes, running in packs on the streets like animals. 0000005696 00000 n That night Dr. King shocked the world and his followers when . And Tavis, nice to have you back in the program. So King understood violence. 0000001616 00000 n They watch as we poison their water, as we kill a million acres of their crops. CONAN: Oh, the audio is terrible, though. Appreciate it. King delivered the speech, sponsored by the group Clergy and Laymen Concerned About Vietnam, after committing to participate in New York's April 15, 1967 anti-Vietnam war march from Central Park to the United Nations, sponsored by the Spring Mobilization to End the War in Vietnam.
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