First off, welcome back everyone. Or for some of you, welcome to Wayne State. I hope you all had a wonderful break, and are ready to take on this so far frigid second semester.

As many of you know, on Monday we celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. Day. A very important holiday every year, even though we don’t get school off here at Wayne State, but this year and this week it seems even more important.

Republican political leaders spent Monday trying to pay tribute to the man who fought his entire life, and ultimately gave his life, for social equality. Many of these same Republican leaders just a few months ago attacked the NFL and more specifically Colin Kaepernick for their non-violent protest during the National Anthem. Others spend every day besides Martin Luther King Jr. Day, being openly racist.

Congressman Steve King of Iowa has said in the past and as recently as December that diversity is not our strength. But on Monday he decided it would be a good idea for him to post on Twitter a quote and picture from MLK. There are many other examples on the Twitter page of Full Frontal with Samantha Bee.

The current political landscape we live in, spearheaded by the White House, has given these backward thinking racists a new sense of confidence to come out and say whatever they want.

Donald Trump has set the example for others in many ways, but the most recent was when he called many African and other non-white countries “shit holes” during an immigration meeting. King came to the president’s defense on Twitter writing: “Hang in there Mr. President. If those countries aren’t as you described, “Democrats should be happy to deport criminal aliens back to them.”

MLK day has been a day, in the wishes of everyone from the descendants of Martin Luther King Jr., to
not spend your day off relaxing, but rather to volunteer and fight for the rights of everyone in this world. Past presidents have done exactly this, but Trump spent his weekend and holiday Monday on his own private golf course.

If all of this isn’t bad enough on a holiday that should be celebrating our diversity and equality as a country, a non-violent 39-year-old Detroit immigrant was deported back to Mexico. Jorge Garcia, who was brought to the United State 30 years ago as a 10-year-old boy, had to stand in a terminal of an airport and say bye to his wife and children. Garcia had a job as a landscaper and paid his taxes, but unfortunately was to old to be protected by DACA. He was a sitting duck for the Trump administration’s crackdown.

This man did nothing wrong, except come to this country with his undocumented immigrant parents years ago. But he is being sent back to a country he does not know.

I ask all of us to live our lives the way MLK and many other brave souls have and are fighting for. We are all a part of the same species, and everyone should be equal in the crazy world we live in.