Letter to the Editor: How to Honor King

by Brenda HillmanSan Francisco Chronicle
January 19th, 2010

President Obama asks us to honor Dr. Martin Luther King ("MLK remembered," Jan. 18) even as he escalates war for American "safety."

The president and the Congress can best serve King and his vision by halting the wars, by working for diplomatic solutions and peace-keeping in Afghanistan, Iraq, Gaza and Iran - not by drone bombing, corporate militarism and war profiteering.

In his Nobel speech, the president tipped his hat to King's goals, implying that they are unrealistic for American government; he claimed he must accept the tragic necessity of war to keep America safe.

King would have said that the truly "realistic" approach is to address root causes of poverty and violence, that if an individual or a nation raises a hand in self-defense, there must be danger immediately present.

Other means of addressing potential violence must have been exhausted. I salute the president for having once believed this; he is a good man. He should remember his ideals and de-escalate the wars. It is possible to put the moral power of what is right for all people above the false dominance of a single nation.

BRENDA HILLMAN

Kensington