“Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal, and the facts from the fiction. The function of education, therefore, is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character–that is the goal of true education.”
– Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Excerpted from Morehouse College Student Paper, 1947
Dr. King believed “…education has a two-fold function to perform in the life of man and in society: the one is utility and the other is culture. Education must enable a man to become more efficient, to achieve with increasing facility the ligitimate goals of his life.”
Moreover, he stated, “Education must also train one for quick, resolute and effective thinking. To think incisively and to think for one’s self is very difficult. We are prone to let our mental life become invaded by legions of half truths, prejudices, and propaganda. At this point, I often wonder whether or not education is fulfilling its purpose. A great majority of the so-called educated people do not think logically and scientifically. Even the press, the classroom, the platform, and the pulpit in many instances do not give us objective and unbiased truths. To save man from the morass of propaganda, in my opinion, is one of the chief aims of education. Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal, and the facts from the fiction.”
“The function of education, therefore, is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. But education which stops with efficiency may prove the greatest menace to society. The most dangerous criminal may be the man gifted with reason, but with no morals.”
Each year on the third Monday of January, the nation observes Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and reflect on the work that still needs to be done for racial justice and equality in America.
MLK Day is the only U.S. federal holiday designated as a National Day of Service to encourage all Americans to volunteer to improve their communities and to improve themselves.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a man of deep and abiding faith, compassion, and dedication. He reminded us all that “human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability,” and that “the time is always ripe to do right.” He challenged all Americans to live up to the ideals enshrined in our founding documents – that we are all created equal, endowed with unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
In 1963, Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., stood on the National Mall and shared a dream that has continued to inspire a Nation: To bring justice where there is injustice, freedom where there is oppression, peace where there is violence, and opportunity where there is poverty.
As we remember and celebrate Dr. King’s life and legacy, let’s recommit ourselves to embracing the standard he set, to honoring the legacy that lives on, and to solving the challenges that remain.
“If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do… you have to keep moving forward.” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
References:
- https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2022/01/14/a-proclamation-on-martin-luther-king-jr-federal-holiday-2022/
- https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/purpose-education
- https://www.dodea.edu/dodeaCelebrates/MLK.cfm
- https://gettingpeopleright.com/resources/10-martin-luther-king-jr-quotes-about-leadership/