Today every senator, every single one, will pick a side: Do you stand with the American people who are exhausted of forever wars in the Middle East? Or stand with Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth as they bumble us headfirst into another war?
They offered a rare window into the lives, struggles and aspirations of African Americans, and a way for me to feel connected to a community far beyond my immediate environment. Through Ebony, I was introduced to towering figures such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. Their courage, moral clarity and commitment to justice shaped how I thought leadership and service.
In any liberal morality play, Democrats always get to be the shivering, oppressed black people, while Republicans have to play the part of Bull Connor, Birmingham, AL's racist commissioner of public safety. Except the facts are exactly the opposite. I'm sure you're bored of hearing this, but Connor was a Democrat, as were all the politicians promising "massive resistance" to racial integration. Republicans were the ones forcing Democrats to abide by federal law, along with a few John Fetterman- style Democrats.
For it is in examining the people like Dr. King, that we can see how yoga can not just make us feel calmer and more peaceful, but can really affect change in a world that is in deep need of healing. By his words, and more importantly his actions, Martin Luther King Jr. showed many of the principles that are central to and deeply embedded in yoga philosophy.
My new book, " On Mindful Democracy: A Declaration of Interdependence to Mend a Fractured World," is inspired by King and Hanh's friendship. These two men bonded over the shared insight that how we show up for each other matters, as does how we advocate for social change. In his sermon " Loving Your Enemies" King announced, "Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that." Hanh taught: There is no way to peace, peace is the way.
One of Dr. King's ultimate goals was to create what he called the Beloved Community. This was a vision where all people are respected, cared for, and treated with dignity. At New Relic, we are inspired by these principles as we work to build a culture of mutual respect and opportunity. While we are always learning and growing, we strive to create a workplace where every person feels empowered to contribute their unique talents to our shared success.
United States President Donald Trump launched the Board of Peace on Thursday, saying it's one of the most consequential bodies ever created in the history of the world. This is all part of the agreement to reach a ceasefire in Gaza after more than two years of Israel's genocidal war on Palestinians in the territory. Trump said the board will work in partnership with the United Nations to address crises far beyond Gaza.
King's intuition was that white people with lower incomes would support this type of policy because they could also benefit from it. In 1967, King argued, "It seems to me that the Civil Rights Movement must now begin to organize for the guaranteed annual income . . . which I believe will go a long, long way toward dealing with the Negro's economic problem and the economic problem with many other poor people confronting our nation."
"Are you okay?" These were Alex Pretti's last words, said to a woman after ICE agents had tackled and pepper-sprayed her. Videos from bystanders show Pretti holding up a phone, attempting to document what was happening before he himself was pepper-sprayed, wrestled to the ground, and killed by those officers. He lost his life not for committing violence, but for documenting it, and stepping in to protect someone facing it.