In keeping with the custom of "What would Jesus do?," on every anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr Day, we hear references to MLK relating to social and political problems of the day. What might MLK have said of the Iraq War, the banking crisis, the presidency of Barack Obama and now the disaster in Haiti. Frankly, we don't know. We do know what he said about racial equality, economic fairness and the Vietnam War. Sure there are lessons from the past that apply to the present and they should be ongoing lessons, not just annual rituals. The solemn musings every January amount to something akin to Santa Clausification of MLK.
It is not just Rev King who pops up once a year in the collective psyche of his fellow countrymen. Almost every nation has its hero, either a valiant savior or a voice of conscience. I speak from experience, having witnessed a similar phenomenon in another country that deifies another slain civil rights leader of world renown – Mahatama Gandhi of India. Indian leaders in almost every social sphere like to hark back to the life and struggles of Gandhi, whether relevant or not. Most conspicuously, they do so on the 2nd of October, Gandhi's birthday. It is another matter altogether that hardly any public policy, educational curriculum or the agenda of rising political stars are crafted in keeping with Gandhi's philosophy. Call me unsentimental. But I find little utility in evoking historic figures at the onset of every new crisis, especially in a ritualistic way to mark this or that anniversary. It is quite natural for us to look back in a wave of nostalgia and admiration on the life and message on an iconic figure of the distant or proximate past and relate it to the current social milieu to celebrate his/her courage and vision but in the end, it is more useful to figure out what we are going to do.
Speaking of Gandhi, as is common with immigrants trying to recreate and transport a bit of the old country in their new surroundings, a group of Indian businessmen in Houston has succeeded in naming a district after Gandhi. The locality where the commemoration has taken place is populated by south Asian businesses. The effort to rename one of the busy streets after the Indian leader did not succeed (the petition drive failed to garner enough support). New municipal signs now sit atop the street signs at Harwin and Hillcroft proclaiming the nearby area as Mahatma Gandhi District.
Well and good. But what I found a bit strange is the temple shape of the Gandhi signs and the orange borders, a color often associated with the Hindu religion. The irony is that the location also has many Pakistani-American owned stores. It is evident from the report that some are fuming.
Update: In this post about King, Gandhi and in a tangential way Jesus, here is a piece of news that illustrates what I said about evoking peaceful figures for the wrong, feel good reasons. Let's also throw in some Gandhi grenades and MLK missiles for good measure. Then we will have a totally peaceful war.
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