Dr. King: A True Servant Leader

As an educator I was touched by this timeless Huffington Post article from Mr. James Perry, once mayoral candidate and the the Executive Director of the Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center:

“Among the most important lessons I’ve learned from Dr. King is the example of servant leadership. A servant leader is one who offers an inclusive vision; listens carefully to others; persuades through reason; and heals divisions while building community.

It is easy to spot servant leaders. In a room where others are jockeying for attention, they are the ones listening to someone others might consider unimportant. When faced with a problem, they look for solutions that benefit everyone. When something goes wrong, they take the blame. When things go well, they share the credit. They tell everyone the same story, even when it is inconvenient or difficult. They know that they don’t have all the answers, so they seek advice from others. They work hard and inspire others to do the same.

Martin Luther King, Jr. is an example of a servant leader. His life shows the extraordinary power of servant leadership to radically transform a nation.

Our communities and our country need servant leadership more than ever. Deepening economic woes threaten the American dream for far too many working
people. Racial divisions are embarrassingly persistent in too many aspects of our economic and social lives. Political despair is battering the uniquely American optimism that has made us a great nation.

There are precious few servant leaders in our current political environment. Many elected officials are more interested in personal power, individual legacy, and financial gain than in the sacrifice and commitment that servant leadership requires.”

@JamesHPerry

Powerful words.


As educators, we have the honor to teach the next generation of servant leaders. It is our job, duty, and privilege to instill in them the passion to effect change and the empathy to think outside themselves. To inspire them to think not of “me” but of “we.” We also must model these values and these practices for our students.

All educators, indeed, all school staff, must work together to model and teach teens that taking responsibility for our lives gives us total power in creating the kind of life we want for ourselves. Taking personal responsibility and thinking of the community. Over the years I’ve seen our students rally to raise funds for the Hurricane Katrina victims, Haiti relief, and yearly for our Howard County Grassroots Crisis campaign – helping the underprivileged and at risk in our community. I am proud of our kiddos, we’ve done well…but we can always do better!

Which brings me back full circle as to why I posted the words from page 333 of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secret on our library wall this year:

“It is our choices…that show what we truly are, far more than our
abilities” ~ Albus Dumbledore

More inspiring words on responsibility:

“Man must cease attributing his problems to his environment, and learn again to exercise his will – his personal responsibility.”

Albert Einstein

“It is a painful thing to look at your own trouble and know that you yourself and no one else has made it.”

Sophocles

“A sign of wisdom and maturity is when you come to terms with the realization that your decisions cause your rewards and consequences. You are responsible for your life, and your ultimate success depends on the choices you make.”

Denis Waitley

from 7 Timeless Thoughts on Taking Responsibility for Your Life

Our fight for social justice, equality, fairness, and kindness to all people, goes on – inspired by his legacy. Let’s be inspired by the leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr not just on his birthday – but every day – throughout the year!  

Here’s the video we played on #MHTVNews this morning. It came from, of all places, WWE.


And here’s a wonderful article by GlobalMindedEd:

If MLK Were Alive Today, What Would He Ask of Us?

Kelvin Garvanne, an Emmy Award Winning Television Host and Writer and Technical Writer for U.S. Military Training Exercises

Dr. Martin Luther King would ask us to commit ourselves to fighting to uphold the innate worthiness of each human being in America and on Earth.
Years battling for equality have not achieved the goal of social justice. Therefore, Dr. King would demand we look at each other and recognize our humanity inherently makes us worthy of enjoying basic human conditions that sustain our lives. Dr. King would say the struggle to recognize worthiness is more relevant than legal battles to legislate equality.
Martin Luther King Jr. would look America squarely in its collective face and ask why we have not solved the problems of racism, militarism, and capitalism.
Martin Luther King Jr. would ask why we have not agreed that every human being is worthy of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Dr. King would admit the attempt to legislate equality was ill fated and doomed to fail because the myth of America had overtaken its reality. Dr. King would urge Americans to recognize each of us is worthy of inalienable rights and that should be the focus of our battle for social justice.
Dr. King would ask elected officials where is there moral courage. Why is their commitment restricted to their constituents and not every human being who is, or aspires to be, an American?
Finally, Martin Luther King, Jr. would ask us what have we learned and why does it appear we have forgotten history’s lessons; or have conceded defeat in the struggle to uphold America’s founding principles.”

(This was originally posted on the MHMS Media Blog: Martin Luther King, Jr: A True Servant Leader Jan 18, 2010 and I have pretty much posted a variation of this every other if not every year. I think we need it most right now.)

16 thoughts on “Dr. King: A True Servant Leader

  • January 22, 2019 at 10:06 am
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    Gday Gday,

    I love what you said mate,
    all true facts

    Joey

  • January 22, 2019 at 10:28 am
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    Dear The MHMS Daring School Library Blog,
    I really enjoyed reading your blog because I really enjoy learning about people who helped change the world. Martin Luther King Jr. had a big influence on the world. Martin Luther King Jr also said many things that were very meaningful and inspirational. My favorite quote is “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” What is your favorite quote by Martin Luther King Jr?
    From, Ava Ester

  • January 22, 2019 at 10:30 am
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    Dear MHMS Daring School Library Blog,
    I really enjoyed the Martin Luther King video because I never knew that MLK led so many marches, and it really explained parts of Martin’s life, like how he died. Do you know the name of the person who Assassinated Martin Luther King?

    From,
    Leora

  • January 22, 2019 at 10:32 am
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    Dear The MHMS Daring School Library Blog,

    I loved what you said about Martin Luther King. I especially liked that you said “Dr. King would urge Americans to recognize each of us is worthy of inalienable rights and that should be the focus of our battle for social justice.”. I also think that we he would say that. Thank you for writing this. I didn’t know that he was a servant leader so reading this helped me.
    What gave you an idea to write this?

    From,
    Gavi

  • January 22, 2019 at 10:33 am
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    Dear, Daring School Library

    I think that this is a very well written quote . I don’t think anyone ever thinks about :” life’s most persistent and urgent question”. Sometimes people only think about themselves and not about others.

    From,
    Eve

  • January 22, 2019 at 10:36 am
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    Dear The MHMS Daring School Library Blog,
    I liked how you talked about Marther Luther King Junior. I liked how you found a great quote about him. This is a great blog post about him. I like the first two paraghraphs about him the most. Which paraghraph is your favorite ?

    From,
    Hannah

  • January 22, 2019 at 10:37 am
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    Dear MHMS Daring School Library Blog,

    I loved how you defined what a servant leader is, how we need to be one, and how to be one. I wish you sparked a little bit more of his background. Like how he was not treated nicely because of his skin and how he kept on fighting even if some people are protesting. How did Martin Luther King Jr. get famous?

    From,
    Mitchell

  • January 22, 2019 at 6:37 pm
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    Gday to you, mate! Now….are ya’ll in Australia or New Jersey?
    Either coast, Joey, I’m truly appreciative of your kind comment!
    Cheers!
    ~Ms. Gwyneth Jones – The Daring Librarian

  • January 22, 2019 at 6:43 pm
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    Hello Ava Ester!
    Thank you so much for your kind words! I think my favorite quote is yours! “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” How wonderful is that? In these times of such tension and upheaval in politics and the world, it’s important to remember that it’s only love that can drive out the darkness.” Another wise man also said, “All we need is Love” and sadly, he was also assassinated. But it’s up to us and your generation to remind people what can drive out the darkness. Thanks again!
    ~Ms. Gwyneth Jones – The Daring Librarian.

  • January 22, 2019 at 6:50 pm
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    Hello Leora,
    I’m so honored you took the time to comment and appreciate your kind words, thank you! to answer your question: James Earl Ray killed Martin Luther King Jr. with a single shot fired from his Remington rifle, while King was standing on the second-floor balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. Ray ran away, became a fugitive, but was apprehended in the UK using a fake passport and was brought back to the US where he avoided the death penalty by pleading guilty. He died at the age of 70 in jail. Thanks again for your comment!
    ~Ms. Gwyneth Jones – The Daring Librarian

  • January 22, 2019 at 7:01 pm
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    Hi Gavi! Thanks for your comment! —Actually, I didn’t say that, Gavi. You’re quoting Kelvin Garvanne, an Emmy Award Winning Television Host and Writer and Technical Writer for U.S. Military Training Exercises — but that’s a great quote, right? I was inspired by the quote I gave at the top of the post by @JamesHPerry to write this post for the first time back in 2010. Cheers!
    ~Ms. Gwyneth Jones

    PS. (What teacher assigned the task of replying to my blog? Whoever you are, I’m honored, flattered, & would love to connect with you on Twitter or Instagram! and Well played. Didn’t expect to have homework tonight! LOL)

  • January 22, 2019 at 7:06 pm
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    Hi Eve!
    Thanks for taking the time to comment. Was it an assignment? Anyway, I totally agree with you! It takes effort sometimes to think not of ourselves but put others first. It doesn’t come always so easily and it’s good to start young. What I HAVE found is that (like my Mom always said) the more you give, the more you get back. REALLY, it’s true! It’s also a mitzvah! Which means doing a good deed. Consider what you can do this year that would help someone else, give it a whirl, I bet you’ll feel great!
    Cheers dear,
    ~Ms.Gwyneth Jones

  • January 22, 2019 at 7:07 pm
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    Hi Hannah, Thanks for your comment!
    My favorite paragraph is: “Our fight for social justice, equality, fairness, and kindness to all people, goes on – inspired by his legacy. Let’s be inspired by the leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr not just on his birthday – but every day – throughout the year!”
    ~Ms. Gwyneth Jones

  • January 22, 2019 at 7:13 pm
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    Hi Mitchell!
    As a Middle School Librarian, I am going to encourage you to research that info yourself! 😉 I didn’t give a lot of background info of Dr. King, Jr’s life on my blog post because I was talking more about how we can use his past words to effect real change in our future!
    Thanks for your comment! What grade are you in? Have you ever done biographical research? I challenge you to find out more – beyond Wikipedia. Though as I wrote in The Washington Post a few years ago, “Wikipedia is NOT Wicked!” LOL But also databases rock!
    Cheers!
    ~Ms. Gwyneth Jones

  • January 29, 2019 at 10:22 am
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    Dear Gwynethj,

    I love your blog because it had quotes from Martin Luther King Jr.
    It also was very interesting, like I didn’t know that MLK Jr. was a servant leader.
    Did you find something you didn’t know before you wrote this blog?
    I LOVED your blog.

    From,
    Jianna

  • January 29, 2019 at 11:59 am
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    Hi Jianna,
    Thanks so much for your comment! I really LOVE get real ones and not SPAM ones trying to be sneaky and selling me stuff!
    Glad you enjoyed the post. I learn something new every day! My Middle School kids here in Maryland are awesome and are always teaching me!
    Cheers dear!
    ~Ms. Jones

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