The Power Line Show, Ep 163: Martin Luther King Jr., Yesterday and Today

Peter Myers

This special edition of the Power Line Show uses the  Martin Luther King Jr. holiday as the occasion to ponder his legacy in light of the lengthening of history and the dramatic changes in the poisonous racial politics of our moment. And who better to comment than “Lucretia,” Power Line’s international woman of mystery, along with special guest Peter C. Myers, who is professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin—Eau Claire.

We do our best to cheer Peter up over the Packers loss to the 49ers yesterday, chiefly by drawing on his deep knowledge of civil rights and race relations. He is the author of Frederick Douglass: Race and the Rebirth of American Liberalism—simply one of the finest books around on Douglass’s thought—as well as some terrific essays on Martin Luther King Jr, including one we talk about in our conversation here, “The Limits and Dangers of Civil Disobedience: The Case of Martin Luther King, Jr.,” and a related essay, “From Natural Rights to Human Rights—and Beyond.” (Also, for listeners interested in political philosophy, don’t miss Peter’s earlier book, Our Only Star and Compass: Locke and the Struggle for Political Rationality.)

Our wide-ranging conversation covers how students today regard King in the midst of the growing clamor for identity politics, and we also cover some of the latest news about the 1619 Project, and Lucretia and I do a wrap up attack. We end on some of the other news of the moment, including why gun shows are the very model of politeness and courtesy.

You know what to do next: listen here or download from our hosts at Ricochet.

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