King is one of the most widely revered figures in American
history. For example, a 2005 televised call-in poll identified
King as the third greatest American, following Ronald
Reagan and Abraham Lincoln. Even posthumous accusations
of marital infidelity, and academic plagiarism have not
seriously damaged his public reputation but merely reinforced
the image of a very human hero and leader. It is true
that King's movement faltered in the latter stages, after
the great legislative victories were won by 1965 (The
Voting Rights Act, and the Civil Rights Act). But even
the sharp attacks by more militant blacks, and even such
prominent critics as Muslim leader Malcolm X, have not
diminished his stature. However, criticism did not consist
of mere blind attacks. Stokely Carmichael was a separatist
and disagreed with King's plea for integration because
he considered it an insult to a uniquely African American
culture and Omali Yeshitela urged Africans to remember
the history of violent European colonization and how power
was not secured by Europeans through integration, but
by violence and force. To then attempt to integrate with
the colonizers' culture further insulted the original
African cultures. Even the notion of decolonization was
problematic for Frantz Fanon, an influential figure for
black liberation movements. In Decolonizing, National
Culture, and the Negro Intellectual (1961) he had this
to say about the violent foundation on which colonizers
claimed their names against the exploited and obstacles
in making peace under such circumstances:
Decolonization is the meeting of two forces, opposed
to each other by their very nature, which in fact owe
their origininality to the sort of substantification which
results from and is nourished by the situation in the
colonies. Their first encounter was marked by violence
and their existence together—that is to say the
exploitation of the native by the settler—was carried
on by dint of a great array of bayonets and cannons....The
naked truth of decolonization evokes for us the searing
bullets and blood-stained knives which emanate from it.
For if the last shall be first, this will only come to
pass after a murderous and decisive struggle between the
two protagonists. That affirmed intention to place the
last at the head of things, and to make them climb at
a pace (too quickly, some say) the well-known steps which
characterize an organized society, can only triumph if
we use all means to turn the scale, including, of course,
that of violence.
On the international scene, King's legacy included influences
on the Black Consciousness Movement and Civil Rights Movements
in South Africa. King's work was cited by and served as
an inspiration for another black Nobel Peace prize winner
who fought for racial justice in that country, Albert
Lutuli.
King's wife, Coretta Scott King, followed her husband's
footsteps and was active in matters of social justice
and civil rights until her death in 2006. The same year
Martin Luther King was assassinated, Mrs. King established
the King Center in Atlanta, Georgia, dedicated to preserving
his legacy and the work of championing nonviolent conflict
resolution and tolerance worldwide. His son, Dexter King,
currently serves as the Center's president and CEO. Daughter
Yolanda King is a motivational speaker, author and founder
of Higher Ground Productions, an organization specializing
in diversity training.
King's name and legacy have often been invoked since
his death as people have begun to debate where he would
have stood on various modern political issues were he
alive today. For example, there is some debate even within
the King family as to where he would have stood on gay
rights issues. Although King's widow Coretta has said
publicly that she believes her husband would have supported
gay rights, his daughter Bernice believes he would have
been opposed to them. The King Center lists homophobia
as an evil that must be opposed.
In 1980, King's boyhood home in Atlanta and several other
nearby buildings were declared as the Martin Luther King,
Jr. National Historic Site. At the White House Rose Garden
on November 2, 1983, U.S. President Ronald Reagan signed
a bill creating a federal holiday to honor King. It was
observed for the first time on January 20, 1986 and is
called Martin Luther King Day. It is observed on the third
Monday of January each year, around the time of King's
birthday. In January 17, 2000, for the first time, Martin
Luther King Day was officially observed in all 50 U.S.
states. This is one of three federal holidays dedicated
to an individual American and the only one dedicated to
an African American.
Many U.S. cities have officially renamed one of their
streets to honor King. King County, Washington rededicated
its name in honor of King in 1986. The city government
center in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania is the only city hall
in the United States to be named in honor of King.
In 1998, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity was authorized by
the United States Congress to establish a foundation to
manage fund raising and design of a Martin Luther King,
Jr. National Memorial. King was a prominent member of
Alpha Phi Alpha, the first intercollegiate Greek-letter
fraternity established for African Americans. King will
be the first African American honored with his own memorial
in the National Mall area and the second non-President
to be commemorated in such a way. The King Memorial will
be administered by the National Park Service.
King is one of the ten 20th-century martyrs from across
the world who are depicted in statues above the Great
West Door of Westminster Abbey, London.
