In reading a fellow bloggers writings tonight, I suggested to her that she listen to one of the great American political speeches, Robert Kennedy's remarks on the night of Martin Luther King's assassination.
I struck me that it might be a good idea to share it with all of you as well. I consider it one of the best examples of one man's ability to speak with a profound compassion in a moment of great need for leadership.
I can still remember that night. I can still remember that sudden shock, and the loss of a man whose only desire was to better the lives of the oppressed. Three months later, Robert Kennedy fell to still another assassin's bullets.
So much was lost by those murders, the possibility of a better world - or at least a different one from what we know of today.
If you click on that link, you will be able to listen to Kennedy as he spoke on that night that was so filled with horror, anger, and confusion.
Before you do, let me describe that scene to you.
It's the night of April 4th, 1968 and Kennedy is scheduled to give a campaign speech in Indianapolis. On the way there, the news of King's assassination reaches him. The police warn him not to speak, and yet he still makes the decision to do so anyway.
The crowd ( mainly African American ) extends for blocks around the flatbed trailer Kennedy is standing on. They have not yet learned of King's murder, and are happy to see Kennedy showing up to speak to them. He is wearing his brother John's old overcoat as he arrives, and walks over to the microphone.
Ignoring his speechwriters ideas, he simply speaks from his heart. Listen to the crowd's reaction, and how it changes, as he does. It's not a very long speech, but Kennedy manages to speak of those things which needed to be said that night. His simple eloquence and undeniable compassion transform the moment and transcend the horror. He speaks of not only the terrible loss, but the overwhelming need to continue the struggle towards a better future that King had been so much a part of.
This quote is from another speech he once gave. History has proven that his words now apply as much to his own life and actions, as they did to those he was referring to as he spoke them.
"These men moved the world, and so can we all. Few will have the greatness to bend history itself, but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation. It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance."
If I remember correctly, Indianapolis was one of the few large American cities that was spared rioting and destruction that night. Kennedy's appeal to the "better angels of our nature" managed to quiet and still a moment of great tension, and to turn away the potential storm clouds of violence and revenge from at least one city and it's people on that night.
All because of one man's words, courage, and vision.
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