Two great American leaders were murdered before their missions were complete. Their untimely deaths lead to racial discord and confusion which has stained our history for over one hundred and fifty years.
Abraham Lincoln preserved the union of the United States and dismantled slavery. He was a reluctant, but effective man of war. After the Civil War he wanted to heal the terrible national wounds. He sought a post war policy of forgiveness and reconstruction in the southern states. He sought a situation where all citizens and former slaves could adapt to a world of new realities and challenges. Lincoln forcefully argued against government and social leaders who demanded harsh punishments for southern businesses, leaders and citizens. Lincoln wanted the South to rebuild and rejoin the union of states in an orderly and peaceful manner.
When Booth murdered Lincoln his enlightened Reconstruction plans also died. Radical political, business and social leaders marched in to punish the South. Carpetbaggers and other scalawags corrupted the former slave states with schemes. Their plans were to strip the remaining wealth and property of whites and elevate former slaves to roles of political and social leadership. These agents of radical change, in the name of racial justice, hammered the South while it was struggling to rebuild.
Spurred by evil men bent on making a profit and gaining political power, uneducated ex slaves were artificially thrust into political and business positions of leadership. Whites and blacks of the South were equally manipulated and appeased. Due to the extreme distortion created by carpetbagging opportunists, a new violent strain of racism developed which would create the KKK, Jim Crow and "separate but equal" laws which would haunt the nation for future decades.
What would the nation be like had Abraham Lincoln lived to fulfill his peaceful Reconstruction of the South ?
Dr. Martin Luther King preached to our better angels for racial harmony by non violent means. His message was hope tinged with rightful anger over past injustices, however he insisted on reaching goals by peaceful means. Americans of all races listened and his vision of racial harmony was understood and appreciated by most. Old racial barriers and injustices began to melt away as people accepted his message and the federal government enacted fair new laws to fulfill the promises of the Constitution.
His aspirations were silenced by an assassin and a new era of riots and rioters ensued. His death sparked a shift from peaceful to more aggressive means to reach racial justice. Unfortunately, few of the new breed of civil rights leaders followed his path. Out of frustration or expediency, many began to excuse, condone or promote acts of civil disobedience. In my opinion, the dream of MLK was corrupted by political, religious and social leaders more interested in dividing people into groups than uniting citizens. Faux leaders such as Al Sharpton and others have made racism a business to gain political power and money. The federal government got into the business of social engineering again as a bandage for a national deep wound. The Lyndon Johnson trillion dollar War on Poverty plan didn't solve poverty and actually increased dependency among minorities. It also helped further weaken the traditional role of families and churches within black and poor communities.
Over the last five decades, sermons and speeches of anger and resentment have often drowned out the progressive and peaceful message of Dr. King. According to many politicians and social observers racial harmony has declined and people have been lead to overreact to situations before all the facts are uncovered. Rare cases of white cop/black victim have exploded into surreal acts of violence and destruction while hundreds of black on black homicides are largely ignored by BLM, politicians and the media. Poor black leaders such as Waters, Lightfoot and Sharpton spew messages of hate and shout down or silence any calls for reasonable discussion.
In todays "woke" America, black voices of moderation are called "Uncle Toms" or worse and other citizens wishing to step beyond the extremism are called racists.
Sadly the dreams of Lincoln and King remain unfulfilled and America desperately needs another Abraham Lincoln or Doctor Martin Luther King Jr.
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