We know that Martin Luther King devoted his life to the battle for social justice. He also believed passionately in the cause of economic justice. Few people remember that the day he was killed on April 4, 1968, he was in Memphis to march with and speak out on behalf of that city's sanitation workers, who were badly mistreated and underpaid.
We have a chance this year to act on Martin Luther King's dream of a more just society by raising Ohio's minimum wage, which today is $4.25 an hour. Only Ohio and Kansas have state minimum wages below the federal level of $5.15 per hour.
In real dollars, the minimum wage is lower today than it was on the day Dr. King died. Meanwhile, compensation for CEOs and members of Congress has grown exponentially. If there had been a simple cost of living built into the minimum wage since 1968, it would now be $9.09.
We are going to the ballot -- religious leaders, advocates for the poor, some elected officials, and some labor unions -- this year to raise the minimum wage -- we need your help in circulating petitions to do that. Visit raisethewage.org to see how you can get involved.
I discussed last week at TPM Café how good policy can also be good politics. In 2004, George Bush carried the state of Florida by 5 points. On the same ballot, more than 71% of Florida voters approved a state constitutional amendment to raise the minimum wage.
Just think how the outcome of the last election could have been different, if Democrats across the country would have embraced these measures, which are so obviously popular and beneficial for the public.
A Mississippi civil rights leader in the 1960s said: "Don't tell me what you believe. Show me what you do, and I will tell you what you believe." We should strive to show our fellow men and women what we do in the quest for social and economic justice.
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