A reckoning with Reality? 


Fred Prejean
District 4 Constituent
12-21-2006

The LCG Parish Council MLK Parkway agenda item was approved at Tuesday's Council meeting. A sigh of relief, a sense of resolution through compromise and an expression of closure were the conclusions promoted by some... but not before Councilman Menard offered an amendment clarifying the fact that the Council, by virtue of this vote and instrument,  has no intent to rename Willow St. to M.L. King in the future.  Both Benjamin and Williams accepted this language (amendment).  

Congratulations to the thirty or so citizens attending a meeting called by Councilman Benjamin, Councilman Williams and LCG Parish President Joey Durel to address the ML King St. renaming issue.

Congratulations to the citizens who were able to neutralize the rhetoric regarding the ML King St renaming issue and rethink the entire matter in a mature manner.

Congratulations to the citizens for ending the "distractions, diversions, distortions and denial" of truth that has plagued our community ( www.Where'e The Leadership ).

Congratulations to Mr. Benjamin and Mr. Williams for their reconsideration of their irrevocable demand to rename Willow St. to ML King Dr.  We can't always have what we want, when we want it, where we want it or because we want it, even though we may justly deserve that which is pursued.  We black people in Lafayette are not monolithic in thought and nor should we be.  We don't all want the same thing at the same time for the same reason.  We don't always share the exact same views on social, economic or political issues because each of these issues affects each of us differently.  The same applies to white, red, yellow, purple and blue people. God gave each of us a mind of our own and the gifts of reason and  choice.  Martin Luther King awakened this consciousness in us and helped many of us begin new lifestyles including a greater respect for ourselves and others. In his I have a Dream speech King wrote, "But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining  our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and  hatred. We must ever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline."

Congratulations to Mr. Benjamin and Mr. Williams for their reconsideration of their irrevocable demand to rename Willow St. to ML King Dr.  As a constituent of District 4, represented by Mr. Benjamin, I personally thank him for giving consideration to alternative solutions when preferred solutions are not available or not possible.

Martin Luther King said,  " I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain and the crooked places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together".

We can't always have what we want, when we want it, where we want it or because we want it, even though we may justly deserve that which is pursued.  We black people in Lafayette are not monolithic in thought and nor should we be.  We don't all want the same thing at the same time for the same reason.  We don't always share the exact same views on social, economic or political issues because each of these issues affects each of us differently.  But we can tell you the impact these issues have on our families and our neighborhoods. We can tell you what we are currently doing to change the status quo and hope you will join us.  Martin Luther King awakened this consciousness in us.

King further went on to say, 
"But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining  our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and  hatred. We must ever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.  The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. They have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone."

I attended the March on Washington on August 28th, 1963 and witnessed Dr. King deliver his " I have a Dream" speech for the first time.  I was one of five black people from Lafayette who attended this historic event. It was a week before my 17th birthday. While listening to Dr. King, I experienced a feeling of spirituality, pride, self worth and the meaning of being an American.   King's words remain instilled in me, as they do in many other individuals as we continue to support the principles of humanity he espoused.  

To those few people I heard say that "the Civil Rights Movement" missed Lafayette, I urge you to learn your history from people who lived during this period and participated in challenging the lingering, debilitating effects of the "U. S. Post Civil War Reconstruction Era" of Lafayette, La. from 1946 throughout the 1970s. 

Now that this chapter (street naming) in our lives is over, we look forward to returning to the more serious issues Dr. M. L. King intended us to address... like Mr. Benjamin's interest in getting additional recreational resources for our neighborhood parks.  

HOME