The Legacy of King in the Age of Obama

Upon hearing that President Obama was going to use the King family bible for his second inauguration Cornel West had this to say:

While the first black president having his second inauguration on Martin Luther King Jr. Day clearly has important symbolic significance, we must remember that King’s message was much more radical than “having a day on” or committing oneself to a life of service. King pushed for the removoal of the evils of “poverty, racism, and militarism.” Therefore, in a post-recession, still-at-war in Afghanistan world I give you these words from Martin Luther King Jr. delivered on April 25, 1957.

Psychologists have a word which is probably used more frequently than any other word in modern psychology. It is the word “maladjusted.” This word is the ringing cry of the new child psychology. Now in a sense all of us must live the well adjusted life in order to avoid neurotic and schizophrenic personalities. But there are some things in our social system to which I am proud to be maladjusted. I never intend to adjust myself to the viciousness of mob-rule. I never intend to adjust myself to the evils of segregation and the crippling effects of discrimination. I never intend to adjust myself to the tragic inequalities of an economic system which take necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few. I never intend to become adjusted to the madness of militarism and the self-defeating method of physical violence. I call upon you to be maladjusted. The challenge to you is to be maladjusted – as maladjusted as the prophet Amos, who in the midst of the injustices of his day, could cry out in words that echo across the centuries, “Let judgment run down like waters and righteousness like a might stream”; as maladjusted as Lincoln, who had the vision to see that this nation could not survive half slave and half free; as maladjusted as Jefferson, who in the midst of an age amazingly adjusted to slavery could cry out in words lifted to cosmic proportions, “All men are created equal, and are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” As maladjusted as Jesus who dared to dream a dream of the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of men [sic]. The world is in desperate need of maladjustment. King, The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr.: Volume IV: Symbol of the Movement, 190-1.

We are Each Other’s Keepers: The Political Theology of Barack Obama

There has been much speculation about the political theology of President Barack Obama. Some of this speculation emerged out of his words and actions, and some has been invented out of ignorance or lies (such as the belief that he is a rabid postcolonial Islamist). For example, he famously named Christian social ethicist Reinhold Niebuhr as his favorite political philosopher, and was baptized by Rev. Jeremiah Wright, a pastor deeply influenced by Black Liberation Theology. The former admission inspired numerous editorials (overwhelmingly positive) about “Obama the realist” and the latter revelation spurred much denunciation from conservatives. Obama’s subsequent denunciation of the most controversial of Rev. Wright’s sermons birthed even more speculation about what Obama’s actual political theological beliefs are.

However, very little attention has been paid to the actual theological arguments Pres. Obama has used in speeches and interviews. A survey of his public statements regarding the motivation for his policy pursuits quickly reveals an abiding commitment humans should be their “brother’s keepers,” a phrase that comes from the biblical book of Genesis. Indeed, the phrase “brother’s keeper” has become a go-to phrase for Pres. Obama when defending his approach to policy-making from health care reform to international affairs.

For example, during this year’s National Prayer Breakfast Pres. Obama said the following,

When I talk about giving every American a fair shot at opportunity, it’s because I believe that when a young person can afford a college education, or someone who’s been unemployed suddenly has a chance to retrain for a job and regain that sense of dignity and pride, and contributing to the community as well as supporting their families — that helps us all prosper.

It means maybe that research lab on the cusp of a lifesaving discovery, or the company looking for skilled workers is going to do a little bit better, and we’ll all do better as a consequence. It makes economic sense. But part of that belief comes from my faith in the idea that I am my brother’s keeper and I am my sister’s keeper; that as a country, we rise and fall together. I’m not an island. I’m not alone in my success. I succeed because others succeed with me.

And when I decide to stand up for foreign aid, or prevent atrocities in places like Uganda, or take on issues like human trafficking, it’s not just about strengthening alliances, or promoting democratic values, or projecting American leadership around the world, although it does all those things and it will make us safer and more secure. It’s also about the biblical call to care for the least of these –- for the poor; for those at the margins of our society…
Treating others as you want to be treated. Requiring much from those who have been given so much. Living by the principle that we are our brother’s keeper. Caring for the poor and those in need. These values are old. They can be found in many denominations and many faiths, among many believers and among many non-believers. And they are values that have always made this country great — when we live up to them; when we don’t just give lip service to them; when we don’t just talk about them one day a year. And they’re the ones that have defined my own faith journey. (emphasis mine)

This excerpt is a clear example why Pres. Obama’s political theology is so important: it is a direct challenge to the Libertarian political theology of the Tea Party and the most right-wing faction of the Republican Party. Against an Ayn Rand-influenced individualism that denies the moral responsibilities of human interdependence Pres. Obama insists that we are bound to one another and that this fact carries moral and political responsibilities.

President Obama’s Moral Logic for Intervening in Libya

Last night President Barack Obama delivered a speech defending US military involvement in establishing a no-fly zone in Libya. In doing so, he was responding to critics from both the Left and the Right. In this speech President Obama laid out the logic of his moral and political reflection on this issue. It is mostly another in a long line of thinking about American power and responsibility in an increasingly globalized world. However, there was also one piece of the argument that seemed relatively unique to our current president. Before examining the moral logic at work, please take the time (28 minutes) to watch the speech in full:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/all/modules/swftools/shared/flash_media_player/player5x2.swf

(Click here for the transcript of the speech.)

There were three key themes that resonated in President Obama’s speech:

1. America’s unique responsibility in the world.

2. Intervening in Libya is important to American interests and values.

3. The uniqueness of the situation in Libya

3a. The reality of an international coalition, including Arab states, willing to work together in intervening.

3b. The request of the Libyan people and opposition for help.

3c. The United States is not risking much in the action.

3d. The responsibility to take the often stated “never again” position towards genocide and mass killing seriously, perhaps for the first time in history.

I will take these different reasons for intervention one at a time.

Updates on U.S. Sponsored Torture

If you haven’t heard, President Obama released four memos from the Bush administration approving of and describing acts of torture used by our government. You can read about it here and here and here. I was asked by the people at the God’s Politics blog to write a piece regarding this announcement since I have written about torture for them previously. I ended up writing a piece and so did Ryan Rodrick Beiler. Check them both out below:

Torture: A Crime that Requires a Verdict by Jimmy McCarty

Torture: What Part of ‘Do Not Repay Evil for Evil’ Don’t You Understand? by Ryan Rodrick Beiler

My previous posts for them on this subject are:

Torturing the Least of These

Jesus Convinces Some Evangelicals to Reject Torture

History Won’t Wash Away Torture’s Shame