Martin Luther King Jr. and a Moment of Reflection (Video)

I was born four years after MLK was murdered so in a sense he has held space in my life since I was a kid I have matured into a man in the shadow of his work I attended PS 219 KennedyKing school in Brooklyn my early education was nurtured at a grade school that bore his name Culturally we celebrate birthdays with Stevie Wonder39s 39Happy Birthday39 a joyful protest song calling for his birth to be enshrined as a national holiday The desire for MLK Day to become a national holiday was far from universal Infamously Arizona was a lengthy holdout that inspired the Public Enemy song 39By the Time I Get To Arizona39 MLK was a significant part of my foundation as a Black man culturally academically and politically so as a result it is hard not to feel protective of his legacyIn short my inclination to protect MLK39s message and meaning run deep My rule of thumb when it comes to brands and marketers using MLK in their messaging is simple Don39t do it In 2018 Chevy Dodge used excerpts from MLK39s Drum Major Instinct sermon in a Super Bowl ad and it was a disaster General use of MLK is a nogo but to choose this particular sermon is especially galling The Drum Major Instinct lays out MLK39s radical perspective rooted in a critique of consumerism and market realities He takes on the validity of the advertising industry saying 39Now the presence of this instinct explains why we are so often taken by advertisers You know those gentlemen of massive verbal persuasion And they have a way of saying things to you that kind of gets you into buying In order to be a man of distinction you must drink this whiskey In order to make your neighbors envious you must drive this type of car In order to be lovely to love you must wear this kind of lipstick or this kind of perfume And you know before you know it you39re just buying that stuff That39s the way the advertisers do it39 Suffice to say this is not an endorsement of advertising much less of Dodge trucksIf marketers want to embrace the real MLK they have to do the diligence to educate themselves about who he was as a racial justice leader MLK is more than the comforting avatar he has mainly become based on his most famous address the 39I Have a Dream39 speech MLK is a radical visionary who believed in the transformative power of love to bring justice to a people who were long denied it The ethos of MLK is far more critical if applied inside the industry rather than via external marketing communication MLK fought in a principled way to end injustice at the cost of his own life In the Drum Major Instinct he asks us to ponder our legacies what is essential when we think about our work MLK says 39But I just want to be there in love and in justice and truth and commitment to others so that we can make of this old world a new world39 Our industry mission should be to make our 39old world a new world39 To rethink our business39s meaning and practices Do we desire to be an industry comprised of 39those gentlemen of massive verbal persuasion39 amp160Or can we aspire to play a more meaningful role in societyThe only appropriate way in which the advertising industry should use the words of MLK is in an attempt to give life to his lived values and principles Peddling his work in ads and branding cheapens it and contributes to a greater cynicism with how people view our work MLK39s thinking should be woven into our industry39s fabric and drive a culture that places its people at the center As we celebrate MLK39s life we should not coopt and diminish his message Instead we should rightfully celebrate his life but we should cling to the essential tenets of his message even more importantly The industry should commit to inequality and using its power of message to create meaning rather than longing It might feel like a tall order but we have the footsteps of a mighty drum major to walk inVideo at top created by Awa Badiane Click the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNetamp160

SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE MEDIAVILLAGE CONTENT | BECOME A THOUGHT LEADERSHIP CONTRIBUTOR

Martin Luther King Jr. and a Moment of Reflection (Video)

Author

Publish date

Channel

Archived in

Philip McKenzie

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

More Videos:

SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE MEDIAVILLAGE CONTENT | BECOME A THOUGHT LEADERSHIP CONTRIBUTOR

Martin Luther King Jr. and a Moment of Reflection (Video)

Enjoying This Commentary? There's More to Love

Philip McKenzie

TAGS:

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

Cookies