BSA sponsors King lecture

By Josh Rutenberg     2/12/09 6:00pm

In honor of Black History month, Executive Vice President of Electronic Data Systems Corporation John Castle spoke to students Wednesday about how the teachings of Martin Luther King Jr. have transcended racial and generational boundaries. In his lecture entitled "Martin Luther King Jr.: Preacher, Leader, Scholar", which was hosted by the Black Student Association and Leadership Rice, Castle detailed the story of King's civil rights movement and the qualities that made King a successful leader.

Castle said he found King an inspiration for aspiring leaders and bases his own values on the precedent King has set. He said King's leadership ability is something everyone could learn from.

"King never lost touch with his people," he said. "He got down in the trenches with them. Too many corporate executives today have lost touch with the concerns of their people."

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Castle said in addition to his characteristic leadership, King's successes result from a firm set of core values.

"His core values were well defined and came from Christian faith," Castle said. "He understood those values and modeled them. Many of our leaders only [talk the talk]. King didn't expect from others what he wouldn't do himself."

Castle said King constantly risked his life to spread his message of equality, recalling the 19 times King went to jail for his cause, fighting for equal rights for blacks.

"He had a higher calling," Castle said. "He saw life in more important terms of making a difference, beyond selfish interests."

He said he saw himself living King's mantra by participating in the Dallas Foundation, which constantly strives to make Dallas a better place, he said.

Castle also said he saw King as a battlefield general whose cause was rooted in the Constitution and American ideals. Through careful planning, ample strategy and effective communication, Castle said he believes King formed a style of leadership that defined his ability to bring about effective and lasting social reform.

When summing up King's accomplishments, Castle cited King's final "Drum Major" speech, given at his funeral.

"He wanted his eulogy to say 'I've lived a committed life'," Castle said. "I find that inspiring. We're taught to think about our eulogy as a reflection of our life. I'd like to see my life like King's, a life committed to higher values."

Castle, who was raised in East Texas, experienced segregation in his childhood and said a combination of events helped him to see the insidiousness of racism. Now he has come to appreciate someone with that kind of courage, who died for their convictions, he said.

Hanszen College freshman Myles Bugbee said he enjoyed Castle's speech. "I think he did a good job relating King's teachings to modern issues," he said.

BSA President Chuck Franklin, a Wiess College senior, said the BSA and Leadership Rice always look for speakers during Black History month and that Castle fit the bill.

"The way [Castle's] life was impacted by Dr. King, we thought he would be an appropriate choice," Franklin said

At the end of the lecture, students had several questions for Castle, including what King would do if he were alive today.

"He wouldn't have gone into politics," Castle said. "I think he would have continued to speak out against a lack of equality. Poverty was a big issue to King. He would ask, 'What are we doing to make this place an opportunity for all?'

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