MLK Day Musings

I am not American, nor did I grow up on US soil. For this reason, growing up Martin Luther King Day was not a national holiday where I grew up. My family usually followed an Oprah special or something of the like, to commemorate the day. This day has come to mean a lot to me now that I am living in the United States. In particular after my mother shared a viewpoint that I had not given much thought. Because I am not American, I do not always fully appreciate the extent to which I have benefitted from the civil rights movement. My Mum pointed out that Africans and coloured people all over the world have benefitted greatly from the struggles of those who fought in the US Civil Rights Movement. She used the exampe of Rosa Parks, which really stuck with me. I take the bus all the time, and have never given much thought to where I plant my toosh.

Since having this convo with my Mama, I can help but wonder: What would my life be like at my college campus today, if forty-fifty years the, Rosa Parks's and MLKs had not stepped up to the plate?