Some readers asked me what I thought about Martin Luther King. I am writing this letter now because of the urgency of this moment, and the day we honor him is just over a week away. My last article was about “radical prudence” in difficult times. King is the logical next step. He shows what prudence means when the stakes are high, the world is noisy, and losses mount.
Many of us imagine Dr. King as a dreamer. It’s a comforting thought, but real kings dealt with disappointment. He learned to expect setbacks and embrace small victories. He understood that both politics and humans have limits. This part of him is not well known. He was not only a visionary, but also a strategist. He made no mistake that moving forward was the right thing to do. He said the arc of the moral world bends toward justice, but he spent his life working hard just to nudge it.
King knew that working with allies could be just as difficult as fighting enemies. For example, one of his chief strategists, Bayard Rustin, was openly gay, which troubled many leaders at the time. Some within the civil rights movement, including Rustin, resisted. Still, Rustin remained true to himself while others remained silent until they were ready to accept him. Dr. King’s movement was not unified. It was made up of people with different backgrounds and views.
When we look at King this way, we see three lessons. First, being convinced that you are right can get in the way of true justice. Graham Greene once wrote that innocent people should “walk the world wearing leprosy bells,” warning of the dangers of naive idealism that ignores one’s own shortcomings. Mr. King understood the risk. Thinking more of himself than anyone else, he might have smiled at the words of Martin Luther, who is said to have said, “God can ride a lame horse and draw a crooked line.”
Second, bringing about meaningful change often feels like a defeat. From that experience, Dr. King learned about frustration and loss. He faced setbacks in Albany, lost friends, and ultimately lost his life while assisting sanitation workers. That work was considered by even his supporters to dilute his mission. His resilience came from perseverance, not victory. He knew when to retreat, regroup, and accept partial progress in order to sustain the movement. Today, protests are quickly overshadowed by recent atrocities, making it easy to feel helpless. King wouldn’t have been surprised. He knew that real change requires discipline, not just emotion. Discipline is gradual, unglamorous, and easily abandoned.
Third, avoid getting caught up in the drama. Excitement often attracts more attention than personality, and appearance can sometimes supersede substance. For King, nonviolence was a harsh, practical lesson in self-control. His supporters learned to remain calm even when insulted and were ready to face dogs and prison without losing their composure. People today are often confident, but rarely are they truly disciplined. Dr. King knew that unchecked justice could begin to look like the very thing it is. Movements fail not because people are apathetic, but because they lack self-control.
This leads directly to the confusion we see today. A sense of hopelessness spreads and the voices grow louder. We feel torn between screaming into the void and giving up. Both seem real, but neither will help us move forward. King showed another way. It means staying, practicing, waiting, and keeping trying. He did not attribute history to his success because he was right. He believed that history owed much to his efforts. It’s a harder deal than you might expect. Real change takes time, includes mistakes, and probably hurts.
On Martin Luther King Day, it’s easy to recite dreams. Quotes are free. The real movement begins when we realize that we are complicit in the very things we are lamenting. Work is a personal cost we don’t want to pay because guilt is more convenient than change, and ironically, the security of a side hustle is a smart way to watch the wreckage while doing nothing. Humanity takes off the mask, steps into the light, and ultimately makes the decision to pay the price for his conviction.
In a world full of spectacle and short on patience, Dr. King’s lesson is about patience. We make a difference, not by being right, being loud, or always winning, but by being challenged, knowing where we can’t compromise, and continuing to work hard even after we no longer feel challenged.
It’s not moving in the usual way. That makes sense.
notes and reading
-
martin luther king jr. Where do we go from here: chaos or community? (1967) and Why I can’t wait (1964) – “Albany”: Albany, Georgia Movement. “The mistake I made there was to protest against racism in general and not against individual aspects of racism. Our protests were so vague that we got nothing, and people were left very demoralized and hopeless. We would have been much better off focusing on integrating buses and lunch counters. Even one victory of this kind would have been symbolic, galvanized support, and boosted morale…”
-
David J. Garrow Taking Up the Cross: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (1986).
-
Jonathan Eig King: Life (2023). In his latest major biography, Eig uses newly declassified FBI files and archives to show a more “complex” king. It does not avoid his melancholy, his shortcomings, or tactical disagreements with other leaders. Kindle $12.99
-
Dr. King delivered his final sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. Full text. A passage from a sermon is carved into the wall of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. “If we want to bring peace to the planet, our loyalties must be to the world as a whole, not between sectors. Our loyalties must transcend race, tribe, class, and nation. And this means we must cultivate a global perspective.”
extreme caution – January 11, 2026
Approximately 2+2=5
Source: 2 + 2 = 5 – williamgreen.substack.com
