Have Political Parties Abandoned Their Origins?

Martin Luther King Jr. is widely regarded as one of the greatest human beings that has ever lived. His leadership qualities were second to none.
He could command not only the church but just about everyone who was committed to positive change. These people were black, white, LGBTQ+, and everything in between. Although methods were different, Malcolm X is also in the same category as MLK with leadership qualities and abilities to command attention and make things happen. These two are just a couple of the famous or infamous boat rockers of yesterday. So what did these two leaders and others of the past have in common? What were they doing that made them so successful?
They were in the streets. They were grassroots leaders who did not need to hold political office to make positive changes for us all. Many of our current political leaders started out this way. They got into “good trouble” as the honorable John Lewis said. This good trouble helped to elect many of our current leaders who have held office for decades. We have elected officials who have been in office longer than I have been alive (I'm 39). So the question is, what happened to this type of beginning? Why are there no more of these grassroots humble beginnings? Or why aren't we hearing about them as much?
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to The Arena to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.