We don’t get many outright victories. The work is hard and moral victories are what we are most accustomed to. While the knowledge that we are steadily moving the cause of justice along is satisfying, it is always a beautiful thing when justice breaks through swiftly and mightily. Just this past week, I saw it. The hand of God moved in a way that was as remarkable as it was unmistakable.
Just a few days ago, I wrote these words:
When I heard that the North Texas MLK Parade invited Texas Governor Greg Abbott to be their Honorary Grand Marshal, I figured it was a joke. No human with even the slightest inkling of intelligence would think that inviting Abbott was a good idea. However, it seems that there was a dumbass in the mix. The dumbass has no respect for the people that Martin stood with. If so, they would’ve invited a keeper of the dream not a killer of the dream.
What were they thinking?
Migrants dying on the border.
Transgender folks can’t go to the bathroom.
Black folk getting poorer.
The rich getting exponentially richer.
People getting executed in Huntsville.
Healthcare being slashed.
Schools going unfunded.
The evil bullshit just flows like water.
This is the guy they think needs to be the Honorary Grand Marshal?
Those who choose to participate in this event have sided with politics over Martin…politics over God. Good and evil is clear in this situation. The organizers have chosen evil. They have proven themselves to be just as evil as Abbott. Which leads me to forcefully declare…
This ain’t no damn parade.
This is a damn charade.
In the midst of our anger, we held a press conference. Each of us took terms lambasting the decision to invite Governor Abbott. Our words traveled all over the Metroplex and then went national (thanks to NPR). The sponsors of the parade started to feel the pressure and began pulling out. Then, we kept turning up the heat. Ultimately, the organizers of the North Texas MLK Parade did not have the money to pay the permiting fees. As we were about to hold another press conference, we got the good news.
Canceled.
I have no doubt that if we had not held that initial press conference, the North Texas MLK Parade would have gone on as planned. Gov. Abbott would have been at the head of the parade waving and smiling and the injustice would have continued unabated. We couldn’t allow that shit to go unchallenged. We were the last bastion of resistance.
Make no mistake…
We fought for the DREAM and won.
There are those who have criticized us. They have said that we should have promoted dialogue. They are ignorant. How are you going to dialogue with somebody driving by on a float? Gov. Abbott didn’t care about anything but a photo-op.
Now, there will be no photos. There will only be the historic local parades sponsored by local businesses with local people. That’s exactly the way it should be.
Here in North Texas, the DREAM still lives and it is our job to make sure it never dies.
Amen.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In