Corrected Martin Luther King quote
The first sentence of my prior post (see below) was not written by or spoken by MLK. Instead it was added, allegedly by Jessica Dovey. Dovey is a Twitter user who claimed credit for the modification after the quote went viral. The second sentence should read “Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars.” She wrote the post in response to news that the US government shot and killed Osama bin Laden. See the full context of the MLK quote further below.
“I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
AUTHOR: Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929–68)
QUOTATION: The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it. Through violence you may murder the liar, but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish the truth. Through violence you may murder the hater, but you do not murder hate. In fact, violence merely increases hate. So it goes. Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.
ATTRIBUTION: MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR., Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?, pp. 62–63 (1967).
