Jan 162024
 

(photograph by Richard Avedon from The New Yorker’s website)

Above is Richard Avedon’s portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. with his father, Martin Luther King, and his son, Martin Luther King III, 1963. The image is part of the 1964 book Nothing Personal, Avedon’s collaboration with writer James Baldwin.

Jan 202014
 

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Yousuf Karsh- Martin Luther King, Jr.

“We all have the drum major instinct. We all want to be important, to surpass others, to achieve distinction, to lead the parade. … And the great issue of life is to harness the drum major instinct. It is a good instinct if you don’t distort it and pervert it. Don’t give it up. Keep feeling the need for being important. Keep feeling the need for being first. But I want you to be the first in love. I want you to be the first in moral excellence. I want you to be the first in generosity.”

– Martin Luther King, Jr. from “The Drum Major Instinct” Sermon given at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta Georgia 1968

There are so many great points made in this sermon. It’s a really good read and so much of it continues to resonate with life in the world today.