Realistically accept the fact that the National Liberation Front has substantial support in South Vietnam and must thereby play a role in any meaningful negotiations and in any future Vietnam government. %PDF-1.3 % Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a speech opposing the Vietnam War in April 1967. Perhaps the more difficult but no less necessary task is to speak for those who have been designated as our enemies. Your donation is fully tax-deductible. And the last poll taken in his life by Harris, the Harris Poll, Neal, found that nearly three quarters of the American people, nearly three quarters, had turned against Martin on this issue, and 55 percent of his own people, black folk, had turned against him. Attachment 2: Definitions Attachment 3: King Opposed Vietnam War; We Must Oppose US War in Iraq. At the U.N. King also brought up issues of civil rights and the draft. n/a martin luther king jr. (born michael king january 15, 1929 april 1968) was an american baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in . We must be prepared to match actions with words by seeking out every creative means of protest possible. 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. MLK Opposed "Poverty, Racism & Militarism" in Speech One Year Before For the peasants this new government meant real land reform, one of the most important needs in their lives. To speak for them is to explain this lack of confidence in Western words, and especially their distrust of American intentions now. We must not engage in a negative anti-communism, but rather in a positive thrust for democracy, realizing that our greatest defense against communism is to take offensive action in behalf of justice. 0000001739 00000 n For nine years we vigorously supported the French in their abortive effort to recolonize Vietnam. [26], The same year, King nominated Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize, but the prize was not awarded to anyone that year. 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. I am convinced that if we are to get on the right side of the world revolution, we as a nation must undergo a radical revolution of values. 0000002427 00000 n We may cry out desperately for time to pause in her passage, but time is deaf to every plea and rushes on. Thank you. And I think that if nothing else what we need to wrestle with in a contemporary sense, Neal, is the question of whether or not there is another way that King would have us consider were he allowed to do. Perhaps only his sense of humor and of irony can save him when he hears the most powerful nation of the world speaking of aggression as it drops thousands of bombs on a poor weak nation more than eight thousand miles away from its shores. While his legacy is commonly remembered by his famous "I Have A Dream" speech, we've sourced four powerful, lesser-known speeches from Dr. King to listen to and commemorate . Martin Luther King Jr. announced his strong opposition to the war in Vietnam, the media attacked him for straying outside of his civil rights mandate. King Leads Chicago). People And Peace Not Profits And War Rhetorical Devices Mr. SMILEY: Yeah. 0000002247 00000 n They see the children selling their sisters to our soldiers, soliciting for their mothers. 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. Martin Luther King, Jr. 4 April 1967. *];\n~~/iQ|h Q Rev. Dr. Well, it was taken in that context, anyway. For nine years following 1945 we denied the people of Vietnam the right of independence. 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. Martin Luther King, Jr.,'s Searing Antiwar Speech, Fifty Years Later And so the question was, Martin, why would you antagonize the president who has been our friend? 0000010534 00000 n "[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. President Obama, this is one campaign promise that he has kept. Since I am a preacher by trade, I suppose it is not surprising that I have seven major reasons for bringing Vietnam into the field of my moral vision. That Vietnam was a mistake. 0000001427 00000 n It makes for an excellent teaching tool for a unit on the Civil Rights Movement, Cold War and Vietnam, or as a bridge to combine the two! My third reason moves to an even deeper level of awareness, for it grows out of my experience in the ghettoes of the North over the last three years especially the last three summers. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Every nation must now develop an overriding loyalty to mankind as a whole in order to preserve the best in their individual societies. Shall we say the odds are too great? And thirdly, I think the main point here in this MLK "Beyond Vietnam" speech is that there is another way. So all that we have is less than 10 minutes of video of the speech. Afghanistan, not so much. . 0000006515 00000 n While King was personally opposed to the war, he was concerned that publicly criticizing U.S. foreign policy would damage his relationship with President Lyndon B. Johnson, who had been instrumental in passing civil rights legislation and who had declared in April 1965 that he was willing to negotiate a diplomatic end to the war in Vietnam. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. - Zinn Education Project And that's just the Times and the Post. On April 4, 1967 Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a speech named, "Beyond Vietnam- A Time to Break Silence" addressing the Vietnam War. On 4 April 1967 Martin Luther King, Jr., delivered his seminal speech at Riverside Church condemning the Vietnam War. And Walt's with us from Cortez in Colorado. 0000030467 00000 n He did say he was going to increase troop levels in Afghanistan, so he's kept that promise. Peace and civil rights dont mix, they say. 0000003415 00000 n 0000011437 00000 n We had to do a whole lot of work in the booth trying to get that audio right. 4. I must cry out when I see war escalated at any point (Opposes Vietnam War). Dr. King And Malcolm X Teaching Resources | TPT But there was a great turnout for the speech. They will be concerned about Thailand and Cambodia. At the heart of their concerns this query has often loomed large and loud: Why are you speaking about war, Dr. King? Jazmyn Ford. The choice is ours, and though we might prefer it otherwise we must choose in this crucial moment of human history. I say we must enter the struggle, but I wish to go on now to say something even more disturbing. Beyond Vietnam -- A Time to Break Silence - American Rhetoric Mr. SMILEY: Indeed he did, Neal. 0000008347 00000 n 159. 0000003454 00000 n On April 4, 1967, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a controversial sermon opposing the Vietnam War at Riverside Church in Morningside Heights, then helped lead a large antiwar march from Central Park to the United Nations later that month. The tide in the affairs of men does not remain at the flood; it ebbs. We appreciate that. 50 Years Ago: Dr. King's Anti-War Sermon at Riverside Church "[9], King opposed the Vietnam War because it took money and resources that could have been spent on social welfare at home. The Americans are forcing even their friends into becoming their enemies. The moving finger writes, and having writ moves on We still have a choice today; nonviolent coexistence or violent co-annihilation. The Institute cannot give permission to use or reproduce any of the writings, statements, or images of Martin Luther King, Jr. They question our political goals and they deny the reality of a peace settlement from which they will be excluded. 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. CONAN: Indeed. But when he turns the corner and then says, essentially, that Martin's philosophy wouldn't work in today's world, he goes on to say that Dr. King didn't know al-Qaida, as if to suggest that Martin didn't understand evil, that Martin didn't understand violence, that he himself had not been subjected to it. But they chose Riverside because King was going to be speaking some days later at a huge rally and march in New York City, and they knew that that rally was going to bring out a different kind of element, a more controversial element. That's what I feel. Love is somehow the key that unlocks the door which leads to ultimate reality. I join with you in this meeting because I am in deepest agreement with the aims and work of the organization which has brought us together: Clergy and Laymen Concerned about Vietnam. PDF A TIME TO BREAK THE SILENCE - nps.gov And after I was wounded, we had four or five 100-pound bomb dropped on us, and 10 Marines were killed outright and 24 were wounded. From Harlem to Hanoi: Dr. King and the Vietnam War 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. Opposes Vietnam War, New York Times, 11 November 1965. (AFP via Getty Images) "Why are you speaking about the war, Dr. King? We must find new ways to speak for peace in Vietnam and justice throughout the developing world a world that borders on our doors. I think of them too because it is clear to me that there will be no meaningful solution there until some attempt is made to know them and hear their broken cries. For from his view we may indeed see the basic weaknesses of our own condition, and if we are mature, we may learn and grow and profit from the wisdom of the brothers who are called the opposition. So this was a huge, huge speech that got Martin King in more trouble than anything he had ever said or done. A Comparative Study of Martin Luther King Jr & Malcolm X. by. But they asked and rightly so what about Vietnam? 0000009964 00000 n Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Beyond Vietnam" was a powerful and angry speech that raged against the war. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, for example, issued a statement against merging the civil rights and peace movements. Vietnam War - The Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute There were experiments, hopes, new beginnings. That's at npr.org, click on TALK OF THE NATION. V)U5v\@apkk;#WF. 4 Powerful Martin Luther King, Jr. Speeches That Aren't 'I Have A Dream' Seeking to reduce the potential backlash by framing his speech within the context of religious objection to war, King addressed a crowd of 3,000 people at Riverside Church in New York City. They watch as we poison their water, as we kill a million acres of their crops. 0000005696 00000 n . So practically everybody in his inner circle was against him giving it - one, because they knew the kind of pushback he was going to get. Let us not join those who shout war and through their misguided passions urge the United States to relinquish its participation in the United Nations. Martin Luther King Jr - n/a - Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King But it ends up being the most controversial speech. It tells why American helicopters are being used against guerrillas in Colombia and why American napalm and green beret forces have already been active against rebels in Peru. Tomorrow, the latest installment with the political junkie. [citation needed] Content [ edit] Mr. SMILEY: And therein lies the rub. Five years ago he said, Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.. 0000002516 00000 n 16, 1967 in New York. And King gives a great speech out of that hospital called "If I Had Sneezed." Of course, the Nobel Peace Laureate, a man who clearly believed in nonviolence down to his very soul CONAN: but he'd wanted to give that speech two years earlier. Not only that, but then-President Lyndon Johnson disinvited King to the White House. 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. And he starts out in the opening line at Riverside Church by saying: I am here tonight because my conscience leaves me no other choice. The Story Of King's 'Beyond Vietnam' Speech : NPR Now they languish under our bombs and consider us not their fellow Vietnamese the real enemy. The question is, is it a war of necessity or a war of choice at this point? In Martin Luther King Jr.'s Vietnam speech, lines 413-416, he repeats the phrase "this is not just" (161). 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. Perhaps a new spirit is rising among us. I am speaking of that force which all of the great religions have seen as the supreme unifying principle of life. 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. Now there is little left to build onsave bitterness. Q%F70%iR! "[8] He connected the war with economic injustice, arguing that the country needed serious moral change: A true revolution of values will soon look uneasily on the glaring contrast of poverty and wealth. The world now demands a maturity of America that we may not be able to achieve. 0000011068 00000 n 0000001616 00000 n A Baptist minister and founder of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), King had led the civil rights movement since the mid-1950s, using a combination of impassioned speeches. 0000012562 00000 n At what cost? The film is the second episode of Tavis Smiley Reports. With that tragic decision we rejected a revolutionary government seeking self-determination, and a government that had been established not by China (for whom the Vietnamese have no great love) but by clearly indigenous forces that included some Communists. That's my own personal assessment. We must speak with all the humility that is appropriate to our limited vision, but we must speak. With this powerful commitment we shall boldly challenge the status quo and unjust mores and thereby speed the day when every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight and the rough places plain.. They ask how we can speak of free elections when the Saigon press is censored and controlled by the military junta. 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. But for those who presently choose but one, I would hope they will finally come to see the moral roots common to both. A genuine revolution of values means in the final analysis that our loyalties must become ecumenical rather than sectional. Somehow this madness must cease. 0000006536 00000 n These are days which demand wise restraint and calm reasonableness. Some civil rights leaders urged King not to speak out on the Vietnam War, but he said he could not separate issues of economic injustice, racism, war, and militarism. 0000002964 00000 n 0000007161 00000 n 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. On April 4, 1967, exactly one year before his assassination, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a speech in New York City at Riverside Church on the occasion of his becoming co-chairperson of Clergy and Laymen Concerned About Vietnam (subsequently renamed Clergy and Laity Concerned ). 5. Mr. SMILEY: Yeah. These are revolutionary times. What do they think as we test our latest weapons on them, just as the Germans tested out new medicine and new tortures in the concentration camps of Europe? Recently one of them wrote these words: Each day the war goes on the hatred increases in the heart of the Vietnamese and in the hearts of those of humanitarian instinct. This quote is from a sermon by Dr. King on April 30, 1967 at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia, drawing from his infamous April 4 sermon at Riverside Church. They know they must move or be destroyed by our bombs. This is the calling of the sons of God, and our brothers wait eagerly for our response. CONAN: Walt, thank you. Let's get Howard(ph) on the line. Let me say this right quick: The comparisons between what King was addressing then about militarism, poverty and racism sound familiar 45 years later. King to Weigh Civil Disobedience If War Intensifies, New York Times, 2 April 1967. We are at the moment when our lives must be placed on the line if our nation is to survive its own folly. They see the children, degraded by our soldiers as they beg for food. Robert B. Semple, Jr., Dr. 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. It will become clear that our minimal expectation is to occupy it as an American colony and men will not refrain from thinking that our maximum hope is to goad China into a war so that we may bomb her nuclear installations. He knows the bombing and shelling and mining we are doing are part of traditional pre-invasion strategy. Fifty years ago in 1967, Martin Luther King, Jr.. The New York Times editorial suggested that conflating the civil rights movement with the Anti-war movement was an oversimplification that did justice to neither, stating that "linking these hard, complex problems will lead not to solutions but to deeper confusion." The Riverside Church donated largely with Rockefeller money. The march was organized by the Spring Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam and initiated by its chairman, James Bevel. Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr., Inc. v. CBS, Inc. Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), African American founding fathers of the United States, Statue of Martin Luther King Jr. (Pueblo, Colorado), Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, San Francisco. He turned that into a great speech when he got out of the hospital.