Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once profoundly stated:
"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."
This quote is often cited when speaking about social justice and activism, as it's being used here today. It underscores the detrimental effects of inaction and was originally delivered by him during the Civil Rights Movement, a time of intense struggle for racial equality. Dr. King recognized that the greatest threat to progress wasn't always the loud opposition, but the quiet complacency of those who claimed to support the cause but did nothing to advance it.
Today, his message is as clear as it was then: silence and inaction are unspoken endorsements for the status quo, and true change requires the courage to speak up and take action. Right now we're in the midst of a Presidential Election, we cannot sit back with one candidate showing a history of involvement in many crimes, cover-ups, and being affiliated with things such as Project 2025, which aims to dismantle our democracy (in the form of a constitutional federal republic) and install a christo-fascist state. It cannot be said enough, the importance of volunteering and showing up for local organizations, like ours, is paramount.
Volunteering is a tangible way to make a difference. It's the transformation of your passive voice into active engagement and directly contributes to the efforts of important movements and political campaigns up and down the ballot. Local elected officials are equally, if not more important for how your day-to-day lives operate. By volunteering, you help amplify voices that advocate for policies and values you believe in. Whether it’s participating in community clean-ups (we adopted a highway), supporting local political efforts (our local candidates need your support), canvassing, phone banking, or even just showing up at our events, your presence and efforts can have a significant impact.
How can you get involved?
Join us at our events:
Sizzlin' Summer Social Picnic: July 21st, 2pm - 6pm at Earl Thomas Conley Park.
Monthly Meetings: Join us on the fourth Thursday of each month, January - October at the New Boston Community Center from 7 pm - 8 pm.
Volunteer at Events: We are always looking for people to help
Register voters at the farmer's market
Help plan and coordinate fundraisers like the Sizzlin' Summer Social and our Annual Banquet
Walk with us in community parades
Joining us at other community events
Use your skills: Offer up some of your professional skills to support the party's efforts: whether in writing, event planning, social networking / fundraising, your skills are welcome; maybe even consider joining one of our sub-committees.
Reflecting on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s quote reminds us that inaction and silence are not options for those who seek change. By volunteering and showing up, you are taking a stand, making your voice heard, and contributing to the collective effort to shape a better future.
Let us not be remembered for our silence but for our actions. Join us in making a difference today.
Additional Quotes about the importance of taking action
The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis. ~ Dante Alighieri, Italian Poet
Let not any one pacify his conscience by the delusion that he can do no harm if he takes no part, and forms no opinion. Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing. He is not a good man who, without a protest, allows wrong to be committed in his name, and with the means which he helps to supply, because he will not trouble himself to use his mind on the subject. ~ John Stuart Mill, Philosopher
Take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. ~ Elie Wiesel, Author and Holocaust Survivor
The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them. ~ Albert Einstein, Scientist
If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality. ~ Desmond Tutu, Theologian