The Arc of Justice

by: Mike Lux

Wed Nov 04, 2009 at 14:00


At a discouraging moment in the long brutal struggle to end Jim Crow, Martin Luther King, Jr. said in one of his most brilliant speeches, "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it curves toward justice." On this day where all progressives mourn another close loss on whether gays and lesbians will have equal rights in this country, that speech gives me comfort not only because of it's eloquence but because history has shown it's truth.

This country has seen a lot of terrible things in our history - slavery, Jim Crow, the horrendous treatment of Native Americans, the long term discrimination against women, the ill-treatment of immigrants - but we have also made incredible progress and overcome many setbacks. What was incredibly controversial not very long ago is widely and comfortably held public opinion today. When King gave that speech 5 decades ago, he was one of the most controversial people in America. Today, he is a national icon with his birthday a national holiday.

To my friends in the LGBT community, I say this with confidence: your time is coming, and coming soon. History and demographics are on your side, and we are close to the tipping point. With more strongly pro-equality young people coming into the electorate every year, we will very soon start winning these ballot fights by narrow margins rather than losing them, and with each passing year we will start winning them with higher and higher percentages. 20 years from now, I believe that gay marriage will be as widely accepted as ending Jim Crow or having women work outside of home are today. You can hold your heads up with pride for having fought so hard now, because you are laying the groundwork for true equality soon- not soon enough, but it is on the way.

It is a terrible hurt for a majority of voters to say that discrimination is okay. But that bigotry is getting eroded every single day. Never give up, and never give in. Keep fighting that long good fight, because the arc of the moral universe curves toward justice, and it is curving your way soon.
Mike Lux :: The Arc of Justice

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The Arc of Justice | 4 comments
It Seems Rather Encouraging To Be Honest! (4.00 / 1)
Despite the polling, I expected a bigger defeat. Remember that polling people on the issue of gay rights always is difficult because you're asking people to admit to prejudice they know is wrong, but in the ballot box there's nothing to prevent them from voting against those "icky" gays! "Who wants them in my church wearing a dress?"

I notice that in LA it's still completely acceptable for a justice of the peace to refuse to allow mixed race couples to marry, let alone gays!

If we had an up or down vote on integration right now, it might STILL fail in Mississippi and Alabama over 40 years after Freedom Summer.

So, nothing is going to happen overnight. But, it seems likely that in ten, not 20 years, gay marriage will be law in at least 20 states and possibly all of them.

And there's really nothing the right-wing can do about it any more than unhappy former slave-holders could get their slaves back after the Civil War.  

Goalposts (4.00 / 2)
The only reason there have been so many anti-gay-marriage initiatives this past few years is gays have been gaining acceptance in our society.  "Protection" from gay marriage hadn't even occurred to anyone 10, 15 years ago.

And note the goalposts are changing as well.  The initial rounds of initiatives prevented civil unions.  Today, the initiatives allow civil unions but prevent marriage.  The fact so many states now allow civil unions isn't even considered a victory, which is fair in one way, but important to keep in mind.

Fortunately, youth is solidly on our side.  Annoying as it is today, in the long run we've already won.

I watched Outrage with my 13 year old daughter and she couldn't understand it at all.  She doesn't even have a reference point to get what the fuss is about.  In her life, there has always been such a thing as homosexuality and it isn't a big deal; or really, any deal at all.  

arc of justice quote (4.00 / 2)
That quotation that Obama brought back, and presumably got from MLK (in his landmark speech opposing the the Vietnam War, not talking about race) was actually originally from Unitarian Reverend Theodore Parker.  

Just thought I'd stick up for the Unitarian attribution there.  ;)

Sometimes (4.00 / 2)
Obama's Arc of Justice seems to be a bit too wide.
The Arc of Justice | 4 comments
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