Tuesday, January 31, 2006

Great Loss

Mrs. Coretta Scott King passed away earlier this morning. Her leadership of a movement that armed men and women not with weapons but conviction to challenge the most heinous forms of prejudice will forever inspire all of those who persevere for a just society. Mrs. King was a gracious symbol of a movement that fought the most hideous part of human nature. Her and Dr. King’s dedication to nonviolence inspired many. They executed the Gandhian method for nonviolent transformation to perfection.

In these times when India and the United States are searching for issues to build a “strategic” partnership through military collaboration and exchange of nuclear technology, our leaders are oblivious of a great collaboration that should become the basis for bilateral relations. Dr. King and Mrs. King went to India as a guest of Prime Minister Nehru in efforts to study and learn more about Gandhi's philosophy and techniques of nonviolence from February 2 through March 10, 1959. The interactions they had with luminaries of India’s nonviolent freedom struggle convinced them of the efficacy and moral necessity of nonviolence as the method for change in the United States. Many years later at a Young India organized tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on Capitol Hill Rep. John Lewis, a very close King associate, shared with us how the Mahatma was a figure that the entire movement looked up to and followed.

I admire Mrs. King for her devotion to justice and peace, for her commitment to nonviolence and for her symbolizing what truly binds India and the United States – the collective battle for a society that is inclusive and respectful of everyone’s life, liberty and their pursuit of happiness. May God rest her soul in peace and give us the strength to be worthy followers of her.

Peace.
Rohit.

No comments: