What People Are Saying This Martin Luther King Jr. Day

The legacy of slain civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. is always in flux. This summer he was immortalized as the first African American and non-president to get a monument on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The statue (which is a lot more impressive in person than in photographs), was almost as heavily debated as who King was and how we speak of him. While some feel its important to look at what King accomplished while also acknowledging he was human, with all the good, bad, compliations, issues and flaws that come with humanity, others prefer a lionization of his image, and to some extent, a complete sanitization. Leading to what scholar Cornel West once famously called the "Santa Clausification" of Martin Luther King Jr. 

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Who Wants To Go To "The Mountaintop?"

In the same year that Martin Luther King, Jr. became the first African American and non-president to get his own monument on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., Broadway is set for Samuel L. Jackson to portray King in the play The Mountaintop, and you can be among those who get to see the show before it opens to the general public! The Snob along with the folks behind The Mountaintop are giving away a pair of tickets to one lucky reader to check out one of the preview shows of the play, starring Jackson and the Oscar-nominated actress Angela Bassett. Want to go? Just "friend" The Black Snob on Facebook and post on the Snob Facebook page -- in 150 words or less -- about how you believe the work of Dr. King and others in the movement directly impacted your life. The Snob Team will then pick the winner, posting the top five responses and the winner on The Snob Blog Wednesday. So fan the Snob page on Facebook and tell me what King and the movement personally meant for you.

Martin Luther King Jr. On the Washington Mall (Photos)

Photo by Danielle Belton

A month before the monument opened, The Snob got the chance to check out a preview of the statue dedicated last week to slain Civil Rights leader Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. King is the first American who was not a former president to be honored with a monument on the mall. Inspired by line in a King speech, the monument consists of a "mountain of despair" with King emerging from "the stone of hope." As a history nerd, I was pretty moved. (It honestly doesn't take much for me. I sometimes get emotional over seeing the Capitol building at night.) Have you had a chance to check out the monument yet? It opened to the public for the first time -- amidst a freak earthquake, and later, a hurricane -- last week.

Photo slideshow after the jump.

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Backpack Bomb left on MLK Day Parade Route

The FBI released this photo of the Swiss Army backpack and the two T-shirts that were inside of it along with an "improvised explosive devise." The FBI is investigating a bomb left in the path of a Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in Spokane, Wash. City workers spotted the bomb Monday inside an abandoned backpack an hour before the parade started. Authorities said the bomb was "capable of inflicting multiple casualties" and a case of "domestic terrorism." Frank Harrill of the Spokane FBI office said, "Clearly, there was some political or social agenda here." There are fears that the bombing attempt may have been racially motivated, with Spokane and northern Idaho's history as being a hot-bed for white supremacists and violent anti-government activists. (AP via Yahoo, MSNBC)

Surf Shop Gives Discount on "Black" Items for King Day

So, is that a sign of progress if a holiday meant to revere a slain leader of the Civil Rights Movement is turned into an excuse to offer a 20 percent markdown on crap you don't need? After all, that's how we honor Presidents Lincoln and Washington! With "white sales" (that's so racist) and what not. So the Thalia Surf Shop in Laguna Beach offered a Martin Luther King Jr. Day discount on all "black" items in their store. That's racist! But racist with savings. So that makes it ... still pretty messed up and highly inappropriate. Damn dirty surfer hipsters. And I thought it was bad enough when I was invited to a "Dream Realized" party on Sunday at a D.C. night club. King died so I could get drunk off Ciroc and get a cheap black speedo? USA! USA! (OC Weekly)

MLK Isn't One-Fits-All

Iconic Civil Rights, human rights, workers rights, anti-war advocate Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a complex man, imprisoned, harassed and hounded to the very last day of his life, but capable of great love, passion and joy. He lived his life for the betterment of others and because of his sacrifice he was martyred before he turned 40. He was difficult and he was at times flawed, but his path and causes were righteous ones. And though he died from an assassin's bullet, his life's work continues on. We live in the shadow of the progress he helped foster and ushered into a world that repeatedly claimed it was not ready for it.

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Glenn Beck Is Coming To Washington, D.C.! Hide Your Sanity!

It could get lost.

Yahoo! News was so sweet to put together a handy guide about Glenn Beck's "Rally of Divine Providence that will lead to him making more money" going on in Washington, D.C. tomorrow. A lot of people are mad because ... well, no matter what he says, the whole she-bang sounds like a fancy advertisement for that cult he's busy working on. Also, the whole thing just happens to happen on the same day when slain Civil Rights Activist, fan of social justice, Martin Luther King Jr. had his "I Have A Dream" speech back in 1963. And it's happening in the same place -- the Lincoln Memorial.

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Family Fued: Dexter Approves Biopic, Bernice and MLK III Do Not

Aw. Remember when the King kids were just cute little kids? Not suing each other and arguing about Daddy's legacy? Well, I personally don't because I was born in 1977, but I have this picture. Proof they all once got along when they rocked Pampers.Monday news broke that Steven Spielberg and Dreamworks had reached an agreement with the estate of Martin Luther King Jr. to create a biopic on the life of the slain civil rights leader. Everyone was excited. Everyone was interested. Who would play King? Would this be a three-hour-epic like Spike Lee's "Malcolm X?" How would it differ from the King miniseries that reduces me to tears when they show it once a year during Black History Month?

But hold up! Wait a minute! This involves the King family, right? I got a bad feeling about this ...

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Pick Me, Choose Me, Love Me, Pt. 1 (Imperfect Prose)

Scholars, politicians, activists, paperback prophets and ministers vie to be your next savior in the Obama Era, but while you recognize them as false prophets, do you recognize the falsehoods inside you?

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