Push through the fear and do what is right.

Opinion | The Luxury of Political Moderation - The New York Times:

"As Dr. King understood, the problem he was facing — and that we now face again — is the problem of moral imagination. Moderates might have the 'good will' that leads them to acknowledge injustice, but their very moderation is indicative of a 'shallow understanding' that is emptied of the pain of those who currently suffer. For these moderates, injustice is a foreign affair, an abstract problem to be solved. Their response then lacks the urgency that a true understanding would bring. . . .

"To much of 1960s America, white moderates certainly appeared to be acting ethically. But in Dr. King’s view, they were betraying their fellow human beings by choosing obedience to social norms above a higher form of justice, informed by love. If only these moderates could find the love that would authentically bind them to their fellow human beings, it would reveal to them 'the deep groans and passionate yearnings of the oppressed race.' And with their moral universe so enlarged, rather than defending the status quo, these now former moderates would recognize the necessity of 'lovingly' breaking 'unjust laws.'"


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