[Southern California Permaculture] Planetize the Movement/Five Lessons from Martin Luther King Jr

Mon Jan 19 07:23:55 PST 2015

Inspiring perspective of Martin Luther Kings work by Drew Dellinger, 
who in his writings shares ecological and cosmological dimensions of 
King's vision that have been largely overlooked.

http://drewdellinger.org/pages/video/751/drew-dellinger-on-mlk-jr.s-ecological-and-cosmological-worldview

Tikkun Magazine, <http://www.tikkun.org/article.php/jan2011_toc>Winter 2011

Five Lessons from Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement

by Drew Dellinger

1. If you want to change the world, change the worldview.

To get to the root of our current ecological and social crises, we 
have to look at the structures of consciousness -- the stories, 
myths, narratives, and paradigms -- that shape the modern world and 
inhabit our minds. Racism, patriarchy, oppression and ecological 
destruction can be seen as dysfunctional "stories" made tragically 
real. To heal the culture, we need to heal our cosmology, our 
worldview or cultural story. As my teacher, Thomas Berry, often said 
(drawing on Jung), "The dream drives the action." The dream of a 
society drives and guides its actions. Tapping into the electric 
currents of our national psyche, Dr. King and the Civil Rights 
Movement transformed the country by dreaming and embodying a new 
cultural narrative.

2. To build a movement, use the power of dream, story, and action.

As Dr. King showed the world on August 28, 1963, few things are as 
powerful as a compelling dream. When we dream, we access creativity 
and wisdom larger than ourselves. Our dream-visions of the future act 
as magnetic attractors. King and the movement also used the power of 
story to dramatic effect. King's oratory worked toward dismantling 
the narratives of white supremacy, wove the freedom struggle into the 
nation's sacred history, and used the multidimensional role of the 
preacher to re-story our society. While dream and story are 
foundational, the genius of the movement was its emphasis on action. 
As King said, "Nonviolent direct action will continue to be a 
significant source of power until it is made irrelevant by the 
presence of justice."

3. Everyone can be a leader.

The civil rights revolution is the story of ordinary people doing 
extraordinary things. Students and sharecroppers, seamstresses and 
senior citizens, preachers, workers, and countless others 
courageously led the country toward democracy. Months before Rosa 
Parks and Dr. King stepped onto history's stage, there were two 
teenagers -- Claudette Colvin and Mary Louise Smith -- who defied 
segregation on Montgomery's buses. Their courage inspired Parks and 
the city's black community. Women, especially -- such as Ella Baker, 
Diane Nash, Dorothy Height, Jo Ann Robinson, Septima Clark, and 
Fannie Lou Hamer --  made the movement happen. To build a mass 
movement, activate the leadership inherent in everyone.

4. Connect the issues.

In the last years of his life, which I call his mountaintop period, 
King expanded his prophetic vision, articulating the connections 
between racism, war, and poverty. At great cost to himself and his 
organization, he bridged the concerns of the Civil Rights Movement 
and the peace movement, and excoriated the madness and brutality of 
the Vietnam War. To those who harshly criticized him for mixing peace 
and civil rights, King responded that he was "deeply saddened," 
because it meant that they had "never really known me, my commitment, 
or my calling." After visiting Joan Baez, who was in jail for 
draft-resistance activities, King told her supporters, "I see these 
two struggles as one struggle."

5. Widen the circle.

In his final months King called for all of us to "planetize the 
movement" and "develop a world perspective." In his majestic 
"Christmas Eve Sermon on Peace," King said, "It really boils down to 
this: that all life is interrelated." On the last day of his life 
King told a trusted aide, "In the next campaign," their nonviolent 
movement would "take it international."

The spirit of Dr. King and the Civil Rights Movement continues in 
today's global movements for ecology and social justice. The 
transformation that is underway requires courage, compassion, 
discernment, and creativity. These lessons from Martin Luther King 
Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement can offer guidance to the next 
generation through the perilous present and into a just and sustainable future.

Drew Dellinger is a speaker, poet, writer, and teacher. He is founder 
of Planetize the Movement and author of love letter to the milky way. See

Santa Babara Permaculture Network Logo

(805) 962-2571
P.O. Box 92156, Santa Barbara, CA 93190
margie at sbpermaculture.org
www.sbpermaculture.org

PlPlease consider the environment before printing this email.

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://www.permaculture-guilds.org/pipermail/southern-california-permaculture/attachments/20150119/f2e59f98/attachment.html>