Immortality is denied to some, while granted to comrades who stood by and fought with Dr. King. The evolution of the church's role in society from being a recorder of popular opinions to a transformative force is highlighted. Dr. King's education, marked by early struggles and the impact of experiencing racism in the North, challenges society's expectations of brilliance and success at a young age. The pressure on children to excel early overlooks the potential for greatness to bloom later in life, as exemplified by Dr. King's journey.
When poet, lawyer, and MacArthur Fellow Dwayne Betts was imprisoned for nine years at the age of 16 for carjacking, he only wept twice. One of those times was when he read Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail." In this powerful conversation with EconTalk's Russ Roberts, Betts explains why he cried, what he learned from King, King's urgency in the face of injustice, and Betts's thoughts on writing the introduction to a new volume of King's letter.