Martin Luther King Jr.,

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When talking to kids about MLK, it is important to include that he is not just a historical figure; his legacy is kept alive by the many people continuing his fight for justice and equality today. Each year on Martin Luthor King Jr day we see lots of quotes and posts praising him. An important part of his legacy is recognizing that he was not universally accepted at the time and how hard he had to work to make a difference. As Ijeoma Oluo said; “This holiday has turned into talking about how peaceful he was, how loving he was, how kind he was in a way to encourage black Americans to be more passive in their activism,” Oluo said. “I think we need to remember who he actually was and what he actually said instead of just what suits the powers that be for us to talk about.” she sees parallels between criticisms of King in his day and criticism of the Black Lives Matter movement these days: that King “was too demanding, that he was inciting violence, that he was asking for too much.”

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