Like father, Martin Luther King III dreams out loud

Martin Luther King III spent Monday in Snohomish County, engaging in candid discussions with area students on such topics as gay marriage, hip-hop culture and his slain father's blueprint for social change.

The second child of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. then delivered an evening talk, titled "My Father's Dream, My Mission," to a sold-out crowd of 750 at the Lynnwood Convention Center.

King, 48, is president and CEO of the King Center, the Atlanta-based nonprofit dedicated to the life and works of his father. During his afternoon discussions with students and faculty from Edmonds Community College, Central Washington University and area high schools, he decried a two-class society of wealthy and poor and talked about the King Center's nonviolent strategies for social change. Among them: information-gathering, commitment, negotiation, direct action and reconciliation.

"My father left all of us a blueprint," he said. "He provided a blueprint for all of us to embrace today, how we should live our lives."

King said, just as it was with his father, "poverty is the moral issue of our time."

"It won't be long before you create a climate where you have two societies — one wealthy and one poor. With the wealth that we have [as a country], that should not be the case. I'm not suggesting that everyone should be wealthy, but I am saying that everyone in America ought to be able to get a decent job, decent education, decent housing and health care. That's something that's doable."

The discussions with students also touched on other topics.

What would his father have thought of gay rights? "I don't know how he'd answer this," King said. "I almost feel he'd be an advocate for partnerships — I don't know about marriage."

A student asked whether hip-hop culture is helping the cause of civil rights. "I've worked with Russell Simmons [founder and CEO of Def Jam Records] on projects," King said. "Russell is setting the tone. He's trying to make a mark on society in a positive way, whether it's financial literacy or young people in the political process."

He was also asked about the Metropolitan King County Council's proposal to replace its imperial crown logo with his father's likeness.

"There is a process, and I've spoken to some of the members" of the council, he said, adding that he was told there might be a resolution on the matter sometime next month. "It's certainly a great honor."

As to the way his father is seen today, nearly 40 years after his death at age 39, King said, "I'm concerned with the interpretation of who he was. We relegate him to the status of a dreamer — he's far more comprehensive. The nation has pigeonholed him."

He noted that the King Center is working with Stanford University in publishing the 14 volumes of his father's writings, about 1,000 pages per volume.

"Those will help preserve the legacy of who he is," his son said.

To the young crowd, he also talked about education and activism, "how to create the highest-caliber education for all people."

"It would be good to see young people of 21 and 22 sitting on school boards. You can graduate college at 21. Why not be city commissioners or sit on school boards?" King asked.

Diane Wright: 425-745-7815 or dwright@seattletimes.com