Yesterday we celebrated Martin Luther King Day. And in our state there were various events to celebrate it. Government office were closed, along with many businesses.
But when I first came to Arizona the holiday wasn't recognized. It took a lot of back and forth wrangling before Arizona began recognizing a man who had won a Nobel Peace Prize for his peaceful efforts against racism. At 35 years of age he was the youngest man to receive the prize.
One might ask that why in these "enlightened times" there still would be so many people in this country who objected to celebrating his legacy.
But one only must look around our world and see that there are ethnic or religious wars going on all the time. Hatred of our fellow man takes many forms. And our own country has been at war in the Mideast for "helping" to solve some of these divisions for 15 years.
For example, the rise of ISIS demonstrates that cruelty of one group toward another is only limited by the imagination. That particular group has outdone any other in figuring out creative ways to eliminate those they hate.
They have beheaded, drowned, blown up and killed thousands in the name of their effort to create a so-called religious caliphate.
Our world will never have peace until we can learn to accept our differences with our fellow man.
We may not agree with everyone - but we can grant them the same rights we all have to live the life of our choice in peace.
