They have a particular relevance for the Trump era.
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Wednesday, April 4, 2018
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[David Leonhardt]
David Leonhardt
Op-Ed Columnist
Decades later, the story of the civil rights movement can seem so tidy â so virtuous and inevitably victorious â that it loses some of its inspirational power. In its own day, though, the movement had much in common with todayâs political struggles, over justice, democracy and equality: It involved more defeats than victories. It often felt contaminated by the grubbiness of partisan politics. And its leaders were human, which is to say that they were flawed and that they made many mistakes.
Today, of course, is the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., killed in Memphis while he was supporting striking sanitation workers. King is now such a widely revered figure that many remembrances of him lack substance. But there are plenty of ways to celebrate what he actually stood for: not just moral clarity but also courage, toughness and resilience in the face of frequent setbacks and vicious criticism.
You can [read his final speech]( delivered in Memphis the night before his death, or you can [listen to it](. Donât settle for the usual quick outtakes. The famous lines â like âIâve been to the mountaintopâ â arenât the only worthwhile ones.
âLet us rise up tonight with a greater readiness. Let us stand with a greater determination,â King said. âAnd let us move on in these powerful days, these days of challenge, to make America what it ought to be.â
Another option: If you havenât yet read Taylor Branchâs great book, [âParting the Waters,â]( you can start it. It remains one of my 10 favorite books, on any subject.
You can also watch [the new HBO documentary]( that Branch created along with Trey Ellis, Jackie Glover and others. (If you donât have HBO, youâll need to wait a bit.) âFor thirty years, I have been trying and failing to help move authentic civil rights history to film,â [Branch tweeted last weekend](. âItâs not the familiar, âsanitizedâ MLK.â
You can also read the collection of Op-Eds that The Times has published in recent days, by [Wendi Thomas]( and others. Weâve linked to each of those pieces below. If you have questions for Jesse Jackson, who [wrote one of the pieces]( leave them in the Comments section of his article; he will be replying to some of them in coming days.
In other news, The Washington Post [has a scoop]( Robert Mueller has informed President Trumpâs lawyers that the president is not currently a criminal target of his investigation. Itâs a nice bit of reporting, but it doesnât change the big picture.
For one thing, the word âcurrentlyâ is a pretty big caveat. For another, I remain skeptical that Mueller would bring criminal charges against a sitting president, given the number of legal experts who consider such a move problematic under any circumstances. The biggest threat to Trump remains an investigation that uncovers significant wrongdoing, weakening his support among voters and among the one body that has the unquestioned power to hold him accountable at any time: Congress.
The full Opinion report from The Times follows. It includes Tim Wu arguing that the answer to Facebookâs enormous power isnât so much regulating the company as [coming up with a private-sector alternative](.
Martin Luther King Jr., 50 Years Gone
Op-Ed Contributor
[Jesse Jackson: How Dr. King Lived Is Why He Died](
By JESSE JACKSON
We owe it to Dr. King to commemorate the man in full: a radical, ecumenical, antiwar, pro-immigrant and scholarly champion of the poor.
Op-Ed Contributor
[The Politically Progressive Faith of Martin Luther King](
By GREGORY E. STERLING
Dr. King said in 1957 that democracy was failing to live up to its ânoble ideals and principles.â That remains true today.
Sunday Review
[We Forgot What Dr. King Believed In](
By MICHAEL ERIC DYSON
He was a man of faith, but his faith demanded action.
Sunday Review
[How Memphis Gave Up on Dr. Kingâs Dream](
By WENDI C. THOMAS
Fifty years after Martin Luther King was killed in Memphis, the city remains the poorest large metropolitan area in the country.
Editorial | Tune In, Turn Out
[What the Supreme Court Doesnât Get About Racism](
By THE EDITORIAL BOARD
The court has a chance to be more honest than it has been about discriminatory voting laws.
HOW ARE WE DOING?
Weâd love your feedback on this newsletter. Please email thoughts and suggestions to [leonhardt@nytimes.com](mailto:leonhardt@nytimes.com?subject=Opinion%20Today%20Newsletter%20Feedback).
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Op-Ed Columnist
[How to Win an Argument About Guns](
By NICHOLAS KRISTOF
When more Americans have died from guns just since 1970 than in all the wars in our history, itâs time to try a new approach.
Op-Ed Columnist
[Is Putin a C.I.A. Agent?](
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
He has undertaken so many actions that contributed to the weakening of Russia that you have to wonder.
Op-Ed Columnist
[Old Boomers Never Die](
By ROSS DOUTHAT
âRoseanneâ is proof that baby boomer culture is the only common culture we have left.
Op-Ed Columnist
[President Trumpâs Perversion of Leadership](
By FRANK BRUNI
Scapegoats, lies and graft galore. Is this any way to set an example?
Contributing Op-Ed Writer
[Donât Fix Facebook. Replace It.](
By TIM WU
We need better options that are designed to protect our privacy.
Op-Ed Contributor
[How Trumpâs Citizenship Question May Hurt the G.O.P.](
By JUSTIN LEVITT
Everyone in an area that loses numbers also loses clout and cash â that includes red states like Texas.
Op-Ed Contributor
[Can âReluctant Trumpâ Voters Rescue the G.O.P.?](
By HENRY OLSEN
Republican-leaning dads upset with the president might help avert a midterm blue tsunami.
Op-Ed Contributor
[The Word That Could Help the World Avoid Nuclear War](
By JEFFREY LEWIS
âDenuclearizationâ is a strange term, unique to the Korean Peninsula. But it works for now.
Op-Ed Contributor
[With Sinclair, We Have Trump TV. America Doesnât Need More.](
By CLIFF SCHECTER
I was a Bush-era political analyst at Sinclair. Its propaganda was bad then, and itâs getting only worse.
Op-Ed Contributor
[Sorry, Hollywood. Inclusion Riders Wonât Save You.](
By REBECCA CHAPMAN
Theyâre a cosmetic fix that inoculates people in power from real change.
Editorial Observer
[Teslaâs Manufacturing âHellâ Wonât Slow Down Electric Cars](
By BILL SAPORITO
Teslaâs inability to meet production goals and the E.P.A.âs easing of mileage rules may delay electrification of vehicles, but it still will happen.
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Readers respond to an Op-Ed article by the former V.A. secretary and discuss what his successor should do.
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