蘑菇传媒

Below is the transcription of a speech given by
Kimi Miyashima, Director of Inclusion & Belonging,  at an Upper School assembly.

Good morning, everyone. I鈥檓 excited to see you all today, and I hope you had a great break. I鈥檓 excited to鈥攁nd honored to鈥攖ake a moment to ask us to collectively reflect on the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

On Monday, January 20th, we will celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day and have school off. Rather than do what many of us are maybe guilty of鈥攚hich is quickly, or perhaps brashly, skipping through this day with a brief thought or acknowledgment of Dr. King and the fight to end racial segregation and other injustices鈥攎aybe we typically reflect on his 鈥淚 Have a Dream鈥� speech and then move on to relaxing, skiing, doing homework, etc. This year, I wanted to kick off with us taking more intentional time to honor the impact he truly had on our country.

Because Dr. King was one of the most impressive and moving orators in history, I鈥檇 be remiss not to take this opportunity to quote him throughout my speech, so I ask that you listen respectfully and allow others to do so as well.

I鈥檇 like to highlight one aspect of Dr. King that made him so formidable and unique, yet isn鈥檛 always acknowledged. This quality is Dr. King鈥檚 nonviolent approach to change-making and leadership. Now, Dr. King had a six-principle plan and pillars toward how he specifically practiced鈥攁nd expected anyone who was a part of his movement to practice鈥攏onviolence. I鈥檓 not going to go into those explicitly, but I will share two important aspects of practicing nonviolence, as signified by Dr. King, which include dignity and compassion.

Dignity: You might remember, a few weeks before the break, I talked about the Dignity Index scale as a self-evaluation tool for how we engage with and speak to and about others. The definition of dignity is: the state or quality of being worthy of honor or respect. Dr. King believed each human being is deserving of dignity鈥攄espite their background, choices, socio-economic status, and all identity markers. Our shared humanity inherently is deserving of respect. This quote sums up how he embedded dignity into his practices:

“In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. 鈥� So even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”

Part of the protests to end racial segregation and inequality included sit-ins in diners that would not serve nonwhite patrons or restaurants that had designated areas for Black restaurant-goers. Students鈥攕tudents鈥攚ere instrumental in participating in these diner sit-ins to ignite change. I want to show you some images that are powerful and speak to Dr. King鈥檚 instructions around the efficacy of nonviolence, as well as the strength it takes to truly practice it鈥攁ll rooted in showing ourselves, and others, dignity despite all circumstances.

Now, as you can see, these were not well-received by many. In this photo, you have students who sat at the diner all day, waiting to be served. A woman comes to get her lunch but decides not to sit with them. In this second photo, you can see folks reporting, some just viewing, some officers in the background, and some other folks harassing the participants verbally.

Lastly, in the toughest image in my opinion, you have counter-protestors鈥攁dults of all ages鈥攐pposing this nonviolent movement by pouring food and drink on the sit-in participants, taunting, crowding, and showing them disrespect, acting with a lack of dignity. Dr. King had training that prepared protesters to face the worst. Above all odds, they were expected to only handle and worry about themselves, treating others鈥攅ven those inflicting harm on them鈥攚ith dignity and respect.

So how did they have the strength to do this? Would you sacrifice a Saturday, sacrifice doing your homework, hanging out with friends, and your time after school, to sit in a diner, have drinks poured on your head, be called names, and remain strong and convicted for a cause? That amount of emotional maturity and strength is unbelievable, but it created a better future for us, the generations that came after Dr. King and these student-protestors. We should never forget the contributions, the time, and the sacrifices of these changemakers. The strength it took is rooted in compassion.

Compassion: Compassion can be defined as: sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it. As you can see, it takes empathy, patience, and compassion to overcome anger, hatred, and resentment. The last quote I want to read is timelessly relevant, especially today:

鈥淒on’t ever let anyone pull you so low as to hate them. We must use the weapon of love. We must have the compassion and understanding for those who hate us. We must realize so many people are taught to hate us that they are not totally responsible for their hate. But we stand in life at midnight; we are always on the threshold of a new dawn.鈥�