Washington, Lincoln and MLK: A Different View of 3 American Heroes

History has never really been a popular subject. Middle school, high school and college students are constantly inundated with the same old stories about the same old people. We pass these courses through a tedious process of remembering dates and highlights of who did what to whom and why. Most of us usually want to get through these classes without learning any more than we absolutely have to.

Once we've accomplished our goal we think that we know our history, and while that may be true to some extent, the most important piece to learning about history is never really achieved...appreciation. We may know our history, but do we really have a sense of gratitude for the sacrifices and struggles that have been made by some of those who have gone before us? Let's go back and visit three common American historical figures and examine exactly what was most important about their contributions:

George Washington - Yes, everybody knows this guy. Just about everyone can tell you that he was the first president of our country and he is known as the father of our country. But, what was the human thing about George Washington that makes his contributions so special us? I believe that George Washington was such an impressive man because he stood before the world's greatest military strength with a rag tag group of untrained, undisciplined miscreants who quite often ran away from their duty at every chance they could get; the History Channel's epic ten hour documentary "The American Revolution", does a wonderful job of chronicling these events. Not only did he stand in battle, putting his very life on the line for his beliefs, but he did so against all odds and actually won his fight. How many of us would be willing to do this...with virtually no real chance at winning? This is what he did, and this is why his was a most important contribution to United States history.

Abraham Lincoln - The thing that most people will say about Honest Abe is that he wrote the Emancipation Proclamation which freed the slaves. First of all, the Emancipation Proclamation only "freed" the slaves over whom the Union had absolutely no control, and it ignored the slaves who were already in Union territory. In actuality, the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1865, was the document that forever abolished slavery in our country. And for the record, Honest Abe did not believe in racial equality at all. So, it isn't for any reasons related to slavery that Abraham Lincoln is important in my mind. President Lincoln was presented with the awesome task of putting this completely fractured country back together again. President Lincoln truly honored and respected the men who gave their lives so that this country would be made whole again and would stand under the one original constitution; nowhere is this more evident than in his Gettysburg Address where he stated: "The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated.... It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us-that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion-that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain-that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom-and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." Not only did he accomplish his monumental task, but he did it with eloquence and with actual participatory military strategic precision. No U.S. President has been faced with such an incredibly daunting responsibility since, and this is why Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth president of the United States of America was extremely important to our history.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. - Everyone knows who Dr. King was. Most people will say that he fought for the rights of Black people and they'll make reference to his "I Have a Dream" speech. What a lot of people seem to forget about Dr. King was the fact that he fought for the civil rights of not only his people, but of all people... "all of God's children-black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics." Dr. King had an amazingly unwavering belief in due process, even in the face of horrendous mistreatment to himself and his people. The administration of equality that due process provides cannot exist only for some people; by its very definition it must include all people. He pressed forward even when he knew that he would not be permitted to continually exist in a time filled with so much opposition to equality. Dr. King spoke of his eventual demise many times, but at no time was his foreshadowing abilities more evident than when he gave his final speech (I've Been to the Mountaintop), one day before his life was taken. In that speech he stated "...like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now....I've looked over the mountaintop and I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you...I'm not fearing any man." Regardless of the senseless act that took his life, his star was simply far too bright for the particular kind of darkness that engulfed our country in his time. He was completely committed to the concepts of justice and equality...I think a lot of us are, but how many of us would actually give our lives so that these principles will flourish? It is for this reason that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr's contribution to American history is important.

I wonder what our future generations will see when they look back on our current administration. What will the children of tomorrow say about our current civil rights leaders? Who are our current civil rights leaders? The answer to some of these questions is down right scary. We need to hear more from those who are passionate about their beliefs and are willing to step up to the plate and proclaim their position in front of the whole world. Don't be bashful....you never know, you very well could be the next important figure in American History.

SOURCES:

http://usinfo.state.gov/infousa/government/overview/gettysburg.html

http://www.amazon.com/History-Channel-Presents-Revolution/dp/

http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=103250477

http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/treatise/king/mlk01.htm