Martin Luther King Jr. by Angela Farris Watkins

Author:Angela Farris Watkins
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Abrams
Published: 2012-01-31T16:00:00+00:00

Martin Luther King Jr. holding his niece Angela Farris.

Angela Farris Watkins in front of the statue of her uncle at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial in Washington, DC.

I was very young when I knew my dear uncle ML (as we affectionately called him), but the delight that I felt when he was around glows as brightly today as it did back then. I remember the times I saw him. He was always very playful, and I remember him as somewhat of an adult playmate for me. His smile and laughter were very amusing. I remember seeing him in our church, Ebenezer Baptist Church, on Sunday morning after worship service and how he would pick me up and give me a kiss and a hug. I have seen the telegram he sent to my mother, his sister, when I was born, congratulating her on my birth and welcoming me to the world. When I look at the pictures of him holding me and playing with me, I remember what it was like seeing him and being comforted by his joy.

As an adult, I know him to be even more special than I thought he was then. He was as normal as he was odd. He was a regular guy—a family man, a scholar, and a preacher—and yet he was odd to the degree that he made the ultimate commitment to America. With his faith, his scholarship, and his heart of love, he faced the ugliness and horror of injustice with an abiding love for all humanity. I know now that he was the greatest teacher for all of us. He had an unusual gift of showing and sharing love, despite the challenges and the hatred and bitterness around him.

A few years ago, as I was writing a supplemental psychology text, I discovered him again. I found his speech to a body of psychologists at the American Psychological Association convention and, suddenly, it dawned on me that Uncle ML was a psychologist himself; he was speaking, writing, and preaching to America about exhibiting our “best behavior,” both individually and collectively—through nonviolent resistance to evil, brotherhood, the beloved community, equality, justice, and freedom. He taught us how to guard and guide our thoughts about one another so that we might serve one another.

I am remembering his fondness for me, as well as his commitment to America, in the children’s books I write, to make sure that generations of children understand what he did. I am remembering him in the college courses that I teach, to make sure that budding young psychologists understand his school of thought and his winning principles. I am remembering him in the Kingian Nonviolence trainings that I conduct with students, schoolteachers, and corporate executives who yearn for his ethical model of leadership.

I am so proud to call him my uncle, for all that he was to so many people. I see him now, as I did when I was young, standing really, really tall. I salute my

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