Subscribe
HipHopWired Featured Video
CLOSE

On the national holiday celebrating the life of Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., politically savvy rapper Killer Mike penned a moving essay in honor of the iconic civil rights leader. As Killer Mike has done in the past, the Run The Jewels rapper displayed his vast intellect and passion in the piece.

Killer Mike’s essay was published exclusively by the good folks of Okayplayer, giving the burly MC space to express his thoughts on the revolutionary spirit of Dr. King. Although nonviolent resistance was the hallmark of King’s actions during the Civil Rights Movement, Killer Mike carefully notes how some might have misunderstood the leader’s stances as being less than revolutionary.

From Okayplayer:

Martin was a young father who at the threat of death dared to push forward on behalf of all humanity against the global reign of America and her allies’ evil, perpetrated through war. He was a man of conscience who valued the life of all humans.

He believed the philosophy of Jesus in a deeper way than just anti-homosexual rhetoric and conservative right-wing dogma. He was disgusted with the government and its use of power to oppress in the same way Christ had been. He defended the principle of all humanity having value and being equal–like his savior. He was not a flower-giving, other-cheek-turning sucker. He was a fiery preacher, returning from the mountaintop with a message that would turn the world as people knew it on its ear. Like his messiah Jesus Christ, he was a revolutionary.

Read Killer Mike’s entire Martin King Jr. essay over at Okayplayer.

Photo: Instagram