Martin Luther King Jr.? Marian Wright Edelman? George Sweeting? Apocryphal? Show
I haven’t been able to find a citation. Would you please help? Quote Investigator: Martin Luther King Jr. died in 1968. The earliest published evidence located by QI appeared in the “Cleveland Plain Dealer” of Ohio in 1986. The newspaper interviewed Marian Wright Edelman who was the founder of the Children’s Defense Fund. Edelman knew King and heard him deliver multiple speeches. Emphasis added to excerpts by QI:[1]1986 March 30, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Section: Living – Panorama – Part 3, Fighting for kids is a full-time job by Deena Mirow (Staff Writer), Quote Page 21, Column 2 thru 4, Cleveland, … Continue reading
The excerpt above did not include a direct quotation from King. In addition, it used the word “stairway” instead of “staircase”. The 1991 and 1999 citations presented further below which are also based on Edelman’s memory both contain direct quotations. Here are additional selected citations in chronological order. In the nineteenth century, thematically related sayings about faith were circulating. For example, in 1831 a Vermont newspaper printed the following:[2] 1831 April 8, Vermont Chronicle, Regeneration, Quote Page 2, Column 4, Bellows Falls, Vermont. (Newspapers_com)
In 1865 a book about establishing religious missions included the following:[3]1865, Foreign Missions Reviewed: With Suggestions for the Formation of a Friends’ Missionary Society by Henry Stanley Newman (Leominster), Quote Page 21, A. W. Bennett, London. (Google Books … Continue reading
In 1972 George Sweeting, President of the Moody Bible Institute, published a collection of essays, one of which included the following pertinent passage. The point was similar to that of the target quotation; however, it did not refer to a staircase:[4]1972, The City: A Matter of Conscience, and Other Messages by George Sweeting (President of the Moody Bible Institute), Chapter: When the Christian Speaks Up, Start Page 44, Quote Page 46, Moody … Continue reading
In 1986 Marian Wright Edelman stated that earlier in her life she had heard a memorable metaphor from Martin Luther King Jr. concerning a partially visible stairway as mentioned previously.
In 1988 the compilation “And Still We Rise: Interviews With 50 Black Role Models” included the 1986 interview with Marian Wright Edelman. Thus, her testimony about King was further propagated.[5]1988, And Still We Rise: Interviews With 50 Black Role Models, Edited by Barbara A. Reynolds, Chapter: Children’s Advocate – Marian Wright Edelman, Start Page 73, Quote Page 74 and 75, … Continue reading In 1991 “Mother Jones” magazine of San Francisco, California printed an article by Edelman in which she described listening to King’s orations in the chapel at Spelman College when she was a young lawyer:[6]1991 May-June, Mother Jones, Volume 16, Number 31, Kids First! by Marian Wright Edelman, Start Page 31, Quote Page 77, Published by the Foundation for National Progress, San Francisco, California. … Continue reading
In 1999 the “Houston Chronicle” of Texas published an interview with Edelman in which she discussed King and presented a slightly different version of the quotation using “stairway” instead of “staircase”:[7]1999 April 30, Houston Chronicle, Section: Houston, Marian Wright Edelman – Remembering the Past – Changing the future by Claudia Feldman, Quote Page 1, Houston, Texas. (NewsBank Access … Continue reading
In 2006 the “Treasury of Wit & Wisdom” compiled by Jeff Bredenberg contained this entry:[8]2006, Treasury of Wit & Wisdom: 4,000 of the Funniest, Cleverest, Most Insightful Things Ever Said, Compiled by Jeff Bredenberg, Topic: Faith, Quote Page 46, Column 2, The Reader’s Digest … Continue reading
In conclusion, QI and other researchers have not yet found this quotation in the writings or speeches of Martin Luther King Jr. The posthumous evidence comes from the remarks of Marian Wright Edelman starting in 1986. She presented more than one slightly different version of the quotation. QI believes that the evidence is substantive because Edelman knew King well. Yet, some uncertainty remains. (Great thanks to Leanne Watson, Daniel Radosh, and Jarrod Baniqued whose inquiries led QI to formulate this question and perform this exploration.) Image Notes: Picture of spiral staircase from fda54 at Pixabay. Image has been retouched, resized, and cropped. Did MLK say you don't have to see the whole staircase just take the first step?You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” Martin Luther King, Jr.”
What does faith is taking the first step even when you dont see the whole staircase?It says that you should take the first step, with the faith that the rest of the staircase is there, and that you will be able to get to your destination, if you can manage to keep taking step after step.
What does it mean you don't have to see the whole staircase just take the first step?– Martin Luther King, Jr. Meaning of this quote: Have you ever tried to make sure everything is 100% perfect and well planned from start to end before you begin executing something?
What are three famous quotes from Martin Luther King?Quotations. "Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope." ... . "I was a drum major for justice, peace and righteousness." ... . "We shall overcome because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." ... . "Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that.. |