8 Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes to Teach Our Children

Martin Luther King Jr. is heralded as a selfless martyr and national hero. But the story that is upheld about his life couldn’t be further from the truth. The world indeed witnessed the relentless violence of racism on the day King was assassinated. Still, the nation has often settled for an image of a one-dimensional freedom fighter with a watered-down message instead of honoring the true progressive activist that he was. For Black families, seeing King honestly is vital. 

The real Martin Luther King Jr. was a Black radical, husband, and father who was robbed of the opportunity to age and see his loved ones grow. And now we know that the FBI may have been involved in his assassination, it’s easy to see his murder—and life—as another example of state-sanctioned violence, removing a Black father from his family.

Decades later, we can only make assumptions about what he would have taught his children had he lived by remembering what he left behind, honestly.