Martin Luther King on Peace and Security for Israel
(March 25, 1968)
Ten days before his assassination, at the annual convention of the Rabbinical Assembly, Dr. King said:
I think it is necessary to say that what is basic and what is needed in the Middle East is peace. Peace for Israel is one thing. Peace for the Arab side of that world is another thing. Peace for Israel means security, and we must stand with all of our might to protect its right to exist, its territorial integrity. I see Israel, and never mind saying it, as one of the great outposts of democracy in the world, and a marvelous example of what can be done, how desert land almost can be transformed into an oasis of brotherhood and democracy. Peace for Israel means security and that security must be a reality.
Source: A Conversation with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,
The Rabbinical Assembly, (March 25, 1968).