The US is again struggling with voting rights, and as the nation celebrates the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday, Republicans only seem to remember one quote by the slain civil rights leader. Heirs to the civil rights icon want action taken with passing the voting rights bill.
“Be engaged. Right now, it is about protecting, preserving, and expanding voting rights,” Martin Luther King III told CBS News.
He also took his message to Twitter.
This #MLKDay, I will not accept empty promises in pursuit of my father’s dream.
I do not want to see photo ops of elected officials if they are not willing to put voting rights over the filibuster.
Today is a day of service and action.
Congress must #DeliverForVotingRights.
— Martin Luther King III (@OfficialMLK3) January 17, 2022
“We’re calling for no celebration without legislation,” his wife, Arndrea Waters King, said. “We can’t celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. without having the legislation, the cornerstone of his legacy, the cornerstone of our democracy, solidified.”
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Bernice King tweeted out this message on Sunday.
🧵
Family,
Tomorrow, there will be people tweeting about my father and #MLKDay who are complicit in, complacent about and/or a part of cultivating some form of injustice.
That’s to be expected, and not just regarding voting legislation. pic.twitter.com/uwiziqWvMw
— Be A King (@BerniceKing) January 17, 2022
And she was right. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell tweeted a tribute to King while blocking the voting rights bill.
Nearly 60 years since the March on Washington, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s message echoes as powerfully as it did that day. His legacy inspires us to celebrate and keep building upon the remarkable progress our great nation has made toward becoming a more perfect union.
— Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) January 17, 2022
Twitter users put him on blast.
This you? https://t.co/GARhU11Y5R pic.twitter.com/HVqtkR6IKE
— PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) January 17, 2022
McConnell’s decision to censure Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren when she attempted to read a letter written by slain civil rights icon Martin Luther King, Jr.’s widow, Coretta Scott King. pic.twitter.com/rC2fBbw3Zq
— Outspoken (@Out5p0ken) January 17, 2022
Not one Republican in the Senate is fit to honor #MLK legacy today. #WeDreamOfVotingRights
— chulesee (@chulesee) January 17, 2022
Hey turtle, STFU and pass voting rights https://t.co/xKHVAm2fVY
— GOP Slayer ⚔️🥷🏴☠️ (@Eff_the_GOP) January 17, 2022
Read the room. It was guys like you he was protesting against.
— christian 🇺🇸 (@gone_roguing) January 17, 2022
Keep MLK’s name out of your mouth, Mitch.
Featured image via Gage Skidmore/Flickr, under Creative Commons license 2.0