The title of this piece is a question I have avoided for years as I’ve navigated giving speeches about the life and legacy of The Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. throughout America, and as far away as Japan. In these United States—land of my birth and that of my ancestors dating back three centuries—my talks have been in red states, blue states, cities, the suburbs, and rural environments. I never thought, when I was a youth, Dr. King would become a vital part of my life work, as a