Filed under: News, Politics, Race and Civil Rights
For the racially conscious, eternal optimist among you who still believes that saving the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) is a battle worth fighting, word that Bernice King has finally spoken out about the group she will lead comes as welcomed news.
Not that she had anything substantive to say. The simple fact that she wants to run this dysfunctional group once it gets past its legal infighting was plenty.
As with most things involving the SCLC, the press conference King held this week was a bit bizarre. It was more interesting noticing what she didn't say.
For example, ending her 10-month silence, King didn't say when she planned to take over the organization. King also didn't offer any guidance on which SCLC faction currently fighting in court represents the rightful leadership. King also didn't say if she would attend either of the two dueling conventions to be held later in the summer.
"The SCLC family must be about the business of restoring, rebuilding and redeeming its own internal soul as we continue in our quest to redeem the soul of America," King said.
Is she serious? Redeem the soul of America? The SCLC can't even figure out who is running the organization and she wants to tackle the soul of America?
In light of the legal warring, it's easy to lose sight of the great things the SCLC did for black folks at the height of the 1960s civil rights battles by organizing voter registration drives and galvanizing the movement through non-violent action.
But that was then, and this is now.
And the SCLC seems way over its head in every way possible.