"We Need Extremists"

The Martin Luther King Day celebration at the Kansas City Art Institute was pleasant enough. The keynote speaker riffed on the merits of so-called extremism. Singers sang and dancers danced. But it was the open forum segment that was most compelling. I paraphrase:

"When will I receive my reparations check?" a man in a work uniform demanded. "How can I make other suburbanites as gloriously unbiased as I am?" a white woman trilled. Even more annoying was a shrill attack on hip hop culture, including a rant on "sagging."

What was it Dr. King said about discrimination?

(The work of Kansas artist Robert Reed, who was in attendance Monday, is on display at the institute.)