Spartan Echo

Section: Opinion

Media Credit: AP Photo/John Bazemore Rev. Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King Jr., right, hugs Kia Ivana Sims after Sims read a tribute to Marin Luther King Jr., during a Martin Luther King Jr. birthday service at Ebenezer Baptist Church Jan. 21, 2008 in Atlanta.

The months of January and February have become a time of self reflection for me as I become older and wiser.

As we recently celebrated the twenty first year anniversary of the holiday honoring the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., I realize that some of us in this generation have turned our culture into a mockery as well as ignoring and attempting to forget the past from which we originated.

Some of us honor this day of remembrance in its entirety by participating in marches and other ceremonies, while others view this day as just another paid holiday. Similarly, many treat Black History Month, which is February, with the same nonchalance. It becomes just another month to have school plays and television tributes that tend to cease once children reach the secondary school level.

So what else can we as a black people do to show tribute to our ancestors during this time of the year?

As I pondered on this question, I realized that there are some everyday types of things that we can do to show our appreciation for what our forefathers did. Something as simple as sitting in a vacant seat in the front of a bus, which may even spark somebody else's memory and inspire a conversation about how appreciative we are for what they did. Taking the time to go out to the polls and vote in local elections is another way to show our appreciation.

At times, we tend to overlook the struggles and obstacles that our forefathers had to overcome so that we may enjoy the freedom and the privileges that we have today. There are even instances when we, as African Americans, complain about what we don't have or how much harder we have to work to get ahead.

As we celebrate Dr. King's birthday and this year's upcoming Black History Month, we should be thankful, but we should also think of some more positive ways that we can celebrate.

Instead of complaining, let us reach out to our elderly relatives, friends and neighbors and talk to them about what they did to help the civil rights movement or what they remember about Dr. King. Also, let us try to make history by being an example for the next generation to follow.

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