This time King stood seething. "Ralph, give me my car keys," he said quietly. Abernathy surrendered them with a stricken, quizzical look as King said they could go on without him. "He did something I've never heard him do before," Levison confided afterward on his wiretapped phone. "He criticized three members of the staff with his eloquence. And believe me, that's murder. And was very negative." King said Young had given in to doubt, Bevel to brains, and Jackson to ambition. He said they had forgotten the simple truths of witness. He said the movement had made them, and now they were using the movement to promote themselves. He confronted Bevel, who had been a mentor to Jackson and Young, as a genius who flummoxed his own heart. "You don't like to work on anything that isn't your own idea," said King. "Bevel, I think you owe me one."Abernathy, Jackson and Young rushed after King. "Doc, doc, don't worry!" called Jackson in the stairwell. "Everything's going to be all right."
King whirled on a landing and pointed up to shout. "Jesse, everything's not going to be all right!" he cried. "If things keep going the way they're going now, it's not SCLC but the whole country that's in trouble. I'm not asking, 'Support me.' I don't need this. But if you're so interested in doing your own thing that you can't do what this organization's structured to do, if you want to carve out your own niche in society, go ahead. But for God's sake, don't bother me!" His fury echoed in the conference room.
i had known Dr King, his father & Coretta from the Mitchellville (Arkansas) Rural Redevelopment Project of 1965-1968.
i was one of the preacher's MANY admirers & (i like to think) his friend. i dug septic tank ditches with him (given the fact that he had an active pastorate, he didn't spend ALL his summers with us kids, but he & his wife spent as many days with us as they COULD. he was just as sweaty & his hands were just as blistered & SORE at the end of the week as anyone else's'! we must have used a 100 gallons of hand lotion that first year!)at the project & therefore knew him WELL, primarily as a Baptist PASTOR & "flesh & blood man", rather than as a celebrity. (is any 16-20YO KID, as most all of us alumni were THEN , really the friend of any grown man???)
MLK, Jr had his faults (for example, he liked the ladies & liquor far more than a serving pastor should. we Southern Baptists are NOT supposed to "mess around" on our spouses, dance and/or drink alcoholic beverages.) but then we ALL have a LEGION of faults. (i have more than most!)
fwiw, his wife was BETTER-liked/admired and YEP, loved. she was "our mender of broken hearts" at Mitchellville, as well as one of the "kitchen ladies" & the "girl's adviser" for the project. (college/HS kids have LOTS of broken hearts!) ALL of us "Mitchellville alumni" MOURNED her passing! there are FEW, if ANY, like her NOW!
free dixie,sw
free dixie,sw