There’s no denying it, Glenn
Beck has stirred up our politics and public
life. I think that’s a good thing. Many
people may want to condemn him. I want to meet
him. I want to ask him some basic questions
and use this moment to engage more Americans
in a conversation about the kind of country
they want. Here’s why.
I listened to a good portion of
Beck’s “Restoring Honor” rally on the
Washington Mall where tens of thousands of
people gathered to hear a collection of
political and religious leaders, among others,
speak about America’s need to “return to
God.“ The rally took place on the 47th
anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I
Have a Dream” speech and repeatedly invoked
King’s memory.
There are some people who assert
that Beck has besmirched King’s legacy. That
he dishonored King, leveraged King’s
notoriety for his own personal gain and
distorted King’s meaning. While I understand
these views, I fear that they are too
defensive – they neither seek to illuminate
nor engage, only to stymie and block a
necessary discussion. King’s legacy has
endured because its content was so right in
1963 and remains so as times have changed.
Beck’s rally was one of the few
times in my memory the entire nation has
focused on MLK other than on MLK Day each
year. At last there is an opportunity to talk
about MLK – not the enshrinement of his
memory, or the activities we gin up in his
honor, but the living meaning of his words.
King’s words summon us to step forward and
act on behalf of all people – not just some.
So, with Beck’s rally, isn’t now the time
to take stock of where we have made progress,
and where there is still work still to be
done? Isn’t now the time to be clear on the
steps we must take to have the kind of nation
King envisioned?
My growing fear is that the country
finds itself in a place where when someone puts
forth ideas we disagree with, the immediate
response is to say how aggrieved and offended
we are; to become defensive; to cast others as
evil-doers. But where does this really get
us?
Too many of our public discussions
have become more about validating ourselves
rather than examining ourselves. About
buttressing our own arguments and points of
view rather than engaging with others –
especially those who seem different from us.
Too often our tactic is to shut out or shout
down our “opponents.”
I do not for a moment believe that
everyone is a saint and acts with good
intentions; but nor do I believe that we must
fear engagement on the tough and emotional
issues of the day. We must not hide from the
need to engage with one another if we truly
seek progress.
Beck’s rally suggests that there
are Americans who feel the country is spinning
out of control, who believe we have lost our
moral bearings, who want to hold onto to
certain basic values. But I suspect the same
can be said about the numerous folks who
gathered with the Rev. Al Sharpton at a
counter-rally that took place on Saturday in
Washington, D.C. Many Americans feel that
things have spun out of control.
My question to Beck is not simply
about his views, but about where he thinks
there might be common ground with other
Americans on how we can move ahead. I don’t
care very much about his religious views (or
his critique of President Obama’s religious
views, about which he has spoken extensively),
but about what his religious views teach him
about reaching out to the poor, the
disenfranchised, the hungry. I don’t want to
hear Beck talk more about his own personal
trials, but about what we need to do about the
children and families who remain vulnerable in
our communities.
I could spend all my time
condemning Glenn Beck and some people would
cheer me on. Instead, I’d like to engage
Glenn Beck. The content of our character is how
we respond to those with whom we disagree, or
who may have hurt us, or who frighten us, or
who hold power over us, or who we simply do not
understand. I’m sure there are some things
Beck said that I disagree with; others that I
support. Either way, I want to meet him.