Here are a few lines from Rick Perlstein's book, “Nixonland,” which I read yesterday, and which are particularly appropriate today—both MLK Day and the second inauguration of Barack Obama. They're constituent letters to U.S. Senator Paul Douglas (D-IL), during the battle for opening house in the summer of 1966; and they're reminders of how much, and how little, times have changed:

• “It is my firm belief, and of all my neighbors, that King should be taken into custody ... Today, the insufferable arrogance of this character places him on a pedestal as a dark-skinned Hiter.”
• “When greedy Mr. Hitler started taking over other countries, people at first thought 'give him a little more, then he will be satisfied' ... Give greedy Mr. King a little more freedom then he will stop. Isn't that what we are told today?”

These days everyone evokes Dr. King for their own cause—even, absurdly, the NRA. That's how things have changed. At the same time, every prominent black leader, particularly those known for non-violence and compromise, is still being compared to Hitler. That's how little things have changed.

Martin Luther King, Jr. after his march for open housing in Chicago was disrupted by violence. He said he'd never seen hatred—not in Alabama or Mississippi—like the hatred he saw in Chicago.

Tags: Martin Luther King Jr., Barack Obama, Adolf Hitler, Chicago,
Posted at 11:14 AM on Mon. Jan 21, 2013 in category Politics  

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