Note: This letter will also be posted on my Substack. I wrote this for an MLK writing contest my school held, which got me 2nd place and an undisclosed prize.
January 22, 2026
The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., PhD
Ebenezer Baptist Church
101 Jackson St NE
Atlanta, GA 30312
Greetings, Reverend Dr. King,
I am writing to you as a representative of the modern American dreamers.
As a Black autistic man in America, I am afraid, along with you. I am witnessing the decay of the American dream right in my neighborhood, in which the federal government is endorsing the bullying of marginalized people through military-like raids, supporting slurs as ‘free speech’, and re-legalizing discriminatory practices in public places such as schools and government agencies. It is as if I am watching the Jim Crow you helped defeat in the South resurrect on steroids by the administration we shall not name. Then again, what is new in America? Non-pluralistic American ideals and discrimination have always been as thematic as the ideals of the Declaration of Independence. Even our great president, Teddy Roosevelt, promoted the ‘whole American’ ideal where the good American is (white and) not tied to their homelands before migrating (or getting kidnapped) to the United States. How did they enforce “the All-American” ideology in the early 20th century? Systemic marginalization and brutality towards peoples who are “not American enough”, usually non-white, disabled, and non-straight. What’s been happening this year alone is a replay of the first score of the 20th century.
But not to worry.
We are applying your teachings and Malcom’s teachings and the teachings of all the freedom fighters of the 1950s and 1960s. For instance, you should be proud of Chicago; our mayor and our governor are creating legislation that are minimizing militarized attacks of undocumented Americans and American citizens of color. There are some in Congress doing their best to oppose harmful laws from the regime. And everywhere you go, you may see large crowds protesting and boycotting. Our fighting spirit is still burning bright.
You had a dream that one day, the descendants of slaves and the descendants of slave owners would sit around a table of brotherhood, eating and fellowshipping together. I, too, share your dream, though I picture your gathering more like a large potluck where people from various cultures bring their dishes to share with all, while each people at the table of humanity are supported so that they can equitably participate (for example, the tables are level and placed on smooth surfaces so that mobility device users can enjoy and join in).
Like that potluck, there is no America without the intersectional input and influences from each person with many different backgrounds (e.g., race, disability identity, gender, class, etc.). We all have different things to offer to ensure America remains unified and equitable, just as our imperfect yet insightful Founding Fathers envisioned.
However, I need your help, and perhaps you can assist me in conveying what we want to the readers and audience. Did you struggle with including disabled people, white allies, LGBT+ communities, and marginalized people from other communities of color (e.g., Latinx, Asian-American, Native American), or how did your contemporaries make sure every identity had the opportunity to contribute to structuring the American dream that you have spoken of in 1963? It’s a dilemma that even I, as a self-advocate from multiple backgrounds, struggle with. People assume that we must focus on the plight of one community at a time, but I feel oppression unites all of us because we face similar types of oppressions, but in different contexts. I wish our movement were as big as your Civil Rights Movement, and as serious as your movement, where we are okay with making the status quo folks uncomfortable and making ourselves uncomfortable for the greater, unified, and equitable good.
I think I might have untied the Gordian knot! The Civil Rights Movement was large because you, Malcolm, Rev. Jackson, the Black Panthers, the Rainbow Coalition, and more of your contemporaries figured out one thing: oppression affects us all; therefore, we must fight oppression together. You have all already provided us with the blueprints. Just look at how you united Black and European-American communities together, or how Fred Hampton united all races together, or (later on) how the Black Panthers played a crucial role in the disability rights movement.
My request to you and your fellow ancestors and “OGs” of the Civil Rights movement is this: teach us and show us examples of how we can bring generations, races, genders, and health conditions together to prevail against systemic oppression and build the table of humanity you spoke about long ago. We’re also open to guiding us to people in our current generations who are dreamers and fighters for building that table for our potluck.
Thank you for your time and consideration. Let us not be strangers; let’s share our knowledge, invite more people to our table, and fight for the table to not only reappear publicly but also stay for a long time. If we can work together across generations, I know we can work together across dimensions (you in Heaven’s Hall of Fame and me, along with your disciples, on Earth).
Sincerely,
Timotheus “T.J.” Gordon, Jr.
Autistic Researcher, Self-Advocate, Multimedia Artist, & Life-Long Scholar