A Dangerous Kind of Unselfishness
“Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?" -- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
How to Be of Service to Others
In his very last speech in Memphis before he was assassinated, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered a sermon called "I Have Been to the Mountaintop." His speech is remembered for being predictive of his imminent death, where he acknowledges that he may not be alive to witness the culmination of the civil rights movement. But I always take away another message in the speech. It's his story of Jesus's parable of the Good Samaritan, a story Dr. King says is about how we can serve our fellow humans and develop a "dangerous unselfishness." On this day, when we celebrate service members across America, I think of what it means to be of service.
Here's the story. A man is attacked by robbers and left for dead on the side of the road. Two men walk past him. The first is a priest. The second is a Levite. Neither stops to help him. The third is a Samaritan, and he stops. He picks up the man, bandages his wounds, puts him on his donkey, takes him to an inn, pays for his stay, and ensures he has help when he wakes up. History has named him the Good Samaritan.
But that's not where Dr. King's story ends. In his sermon, Dr. King wonders why the Good Samaritan stopped to help this man. He has many thoughts. Maybe the other two men were running late. Maybe they thought they should focus on the underlying cause - why is this road dangerous - rather than stop to help the man himself. Maybe they didn't want to touch a man they thought was unclean. They could have many reasons why they didn't stop to help.
But Dr. King thinks the reason is this. The road to Jericho was a dangerous one. Dr. King and his wife, Coretta, had been on that road. The road is narrow and windy, and getting ambushed is easy. Maybe the priest and the Levite looked around and thought the robbers were still there. Or they thought the man was faking and would rob them. Whatever their concerns, the first question they asked themselves was this. "If I stop to help this man, what would happen to me?"
But then the Good Samaritan came by. And he reversed the question: "If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?"
The Good Samaritan stops, and the man is saved.
In this past week after the U.S. elections, I've thought a lot about why I do this work. I started Inclusion Nation for many reasons but the story that always grounds me is the one I've told many of you over the years - the people on a flight to NYC banding together to raise money to get me back to school after my wallet was stolen.
"If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?" That's what Dr. King asked. Here's my version of it. "If we do not stop to help each other, what will happen to us?"
However you choose to do it, I hope you always live your life as an act of service to those who share our planet. Whether it's bringing groups of people together to serve communities, whether it's volunteering your time at shelters and homes, whether it's knocking on your neighbor's door to make sure they're ok, whether it's speaking up when you witness bullying, and whether it's advocating for legislation that will improve communities for everyone - whatever you do, see who is included and who is not, and above all, serve those who do not have the power to have their needs met first.
And the truth is, it is never easy to do that. That's why Dr. King called service to others a kind of dangerous unselfishness. Like that road to Jericho, it is neither safe nor easy. But it is always the right thing to do.
Do the work
This week, I commit to recognizing the skills and privileges I have and how I can use them to be of service to others.
Spread the Word
Looking for a Black History Month speaker?
Ten Actions for Allyship at Work
Everyone says they're well-meaning. But well-meaning is only the start. Good intentions don't change behaviors or systems like real actions taken for change. That is the work of allyship.
What does it mean to be a good ally at work? How can I be an upstander? How can I find a community of support? And how can I ensure people belong here – and thrive? For this Black History Month, join me for an interactive discussion on belonging and allyship at work and how we can each use our roles in our organizations to build inclusive workplaces that last. With a mix of stories, scenarios, and practical rules of the road, let me show you how to find the courage to be workplace allies who move from good intentions to real action.
