King’s Vietnam speech well worth examining

Most Americans identify Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by his poetic and moving “I Have A Dream” speech, delivered August 1963 on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

But his most important speech, and one many Americans are unaware of, was delivered on April 4, 1967, exactly one year before his assassination. Considered by many to be his most courageous, “Beyond Vietnam” is a speech that examines America at war in 1967; an America eerily similar to the one that is at war in 2010.

Heard today, Dr. King's speech reminds us that issues of class and race continue to define America, and that extreme materialism and militarism are as destructive as ever.

I urge anyone interested in placing our current wars in a historical context to seek out a transcript or recording of this speech - a long one but well worth the time.

Holly Hotchkiss

Iowa City