Don't get me wrong, I like the statue. And I like the fact that our government is finally honoring this man. But there are words engraved upon this beautiful monument that should either be changed or erased. A "quote" engraved on the monument is being passed off as a quote from Dr. King. It is not. It is a shortened and changed paraphrase of the great man's words -- and that is just wrong.
It was the poet Maya Angelou who first brought the matter to light. She believes the changing of the words of Dr. King make him look like an arrogant person, which is far from the truth. I agree with her, but I would go even further. Even if it did not make him seem arrogant, it would still be wrong. If a quote from Dr. King (or anyone else) is going to be used, it should be the exact words that were uttered by that person -- not a paraphrasing of those words. Here are the words engraved on the statue:
"I was a drum major for justice peace and righteousness."
And here are the actual words spoken by Dr. King:
"If you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter."
Maybe it springs from my being a writer (sort of), but I respect words and I value accuracy. If you don't like a quote the way it was said, then don't use it. Don't do it because paraphrasing a quote, or changing it is any way, runs the danger of altering the meaning of the person who said it. If any of us had changed this quote this way in a high school or college class, there's no doubt that we would (or should) have received a failing grade. Should a national monument honoring an American hero be held to a less strict standard?
The faulty quote should either be corrected or erased. It's the right thing to do.
Unfortunately, it looks like the paraphrase is going to stay.
ReplyDeleteThis is like changing the Gettysburg Address from "Four score and seven..." to "Eighty seven..."