This morning, a statue of Martin Luther King Jr was unveiled on the Capitol grounds. You can watch the ceremonies at this Georgia Public Broadcasting link.
I was lucky enough to be inside the House chamber during the debate over the approval of this statue. I was, quite frankly, nervous about what I was about to hear. Other debates over statues and symbols have been filled with acrimony and have not always brought out the best in us. Not only were my fears unfounded, but I was genuinely stuck by the bipartisan and biracial tone set that day. On that day, Georgia reaffirmed its “too busy to hate” label.
We’re caught up again in debates over symbols and those that seek to divide us. Today, we have a symbol being added to the capitol grounds that is a symbol that should be used to unite us. May it always serve to remind us as well that every day and at the end of days, it will be the content of our character on which we should be judged.