I should probably address the day.

I don't think I can say anything about Dr. King that would add anything meaningful to the discussion because I was not a great student of history growing up and what I did get was purely from a mostly-white, Midwestern education, and therefore I don't feel like I have any right to it.  I feel the same way about 9/11; I was strongly affected by it, as we all were, but I didn't know anyone who was killed or hurt, or knew anyone with family involved.  I was still a secluded Midwesterner then; I didn't move to NYC for another year and a half.  Whenever the anniversary of that disgusting act comes around, I am sad and angry and I grieve, but part of me feels like I have no right do so because it was not my direct experience.

Doctor King was a great man who sacrificed so much to fight for what is right.  It is so sad to me to know and observe that we still have not reached his true dream, and that we're actually regressing back closer to where we were before he tried to show us how we were wrong.  True, it's not anywhere near as bad as it was.  And yet, despite what I see happening and I know what is right in my heart, I feel like I have no business talking about it, out of ignorance and acknowledging my white privilege, which I also hate admitting I have, but I have it.  I am sorry for that.

What I will say is I applaud Representative Lewis, the last living person to be around Dr. King during his greatest work, for organizing the protest against the Great Orange Menace's inauguration, and the growing list of House members who are joining him.  I hope some Senators join them as well.  I also think that suddenly-Republican-in-a-vain-attempt-to-remain-relevant C-list actor and comedian (using those terms loosely) Rob Schneider and his recent decision to tweet about Rep. Lewis in an attempt to teach him about Dr. King is pretty pathetic.  Go back, to makin' cahp-ays and being fourth runner-up in Adam Sandler flicks, Robbie.

And as we enter this new era of the American Experiment (boy howdy, are we throwing in some new ingredients and variables!), I am thinking of the key lyric in Ben Harper's song "Like A King" which works equally out of context as it does within the song: "How I wish you could help us, Dr. King"