The article written by Carson talks about how King should be remembered more for his work in the actual movement rather than his role as a leader. Carson mentions how King did not want to be charismatic because of those sketchy elements that were brought up in class like manipulation and how leaders need a mysterious quality to them in order to attract an audience. Rather than being a flawless role model for the whole world to follow, I like how the article goes into depth about King embracing his flaws and his fears to the world instead of acting all high and mighty. I think any great leader should have the ability to say that they are scared or admit and show people that they are not perfect because to me, it would intrigue me more by knowing I can actually relate to this person rather than be intimidated and a bit sad that I may not be able to reach the standards they live by.
I did find it interesting how the article goes from talking about King and his major involvement in the black movement and all the actual progress that happened because of him, and then sheds light on the fact that the movement still would have happened without him but may have not been as quick to success. Yes, I’m sure the movement would have progressed in some capacity but it would have been more violent and would it have been worth it to not have King as such a figurehead for this movement just because he was merely a “helper” with other leaders during this time? I found that part of the article a bit contradictory but overall I still got the impression and believe that King was a great leader who showed people that he was human above all else who had fears and dreams just the same as the next person. I feel like that was one aspect that made him so attractable to others because they were able to see him as one of their own and he even compromised his black follower base to not hinder his beliefs of nonviolence and that in itself is so admirable.
I also liked how Carson talked a lot about King’s self-doubt and willingness to accept his flaws. Although self-confidence is a trait that many charismatic leaders have, I think that it is also very important that a leader is able to recognize their shortcomings to prevent themselves from becoming overconfident and abusing their power.
I also found it interesting how Carson talked about how MLK had some doubt and how in the other article it stated how he was not prepared to lead the protest and had some doubt. It also used the word “traumatized” which I thought was interesting because that is a strong word to use and it signifies how he really felt even if others could not notice how he was feeling.
I found this post particularly interesting due to the notion that the Civil Rights Movement would still have been successful but may have taken a different amount of time or a different “leader” and figurehead of the movement if MLK had not stepped up. I found this interesting to think about because as influential and charismatic as we view MLK today, it easily could have been another person with the same message who had similar energy, passion and emotional intelligence.