--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Martin Luther King was an extremist of…" description: "\"Martin Luther King was an extremist of love.\" — Cornel West" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cd/cornel-west-708_extremist_martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-l_3119888.jpg" --- # Martin Luther King was an extremist of love. ![“Martin Luther King was an extremist of love.” quote by Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cd/cornel-west-708_extremist_martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-l_3119888.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cd/cornel-west-708_extremist_martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-l_3119888.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cd/cornel-west-708_extremist_martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-l_3119888.jpg) > “Martin Luther King was an extremist of love.” [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It characterizes Martin Luther King as an extremist of love, highlighting his radical commitment to love as a transformative force. **In simple terms:** King’s love was radical. Key Takeaway Embrace love boldly. Themes love radicalism social change Mood inspirational thought‑provoking Type historical motivational When to use this quote - activism - education - community building Key Concepts civil rights philosophy Questions to Reflect On - What does “extremist of love” mean to you? - Can love be a radical political act? A Different Perspective Extremism can be misinterpreted as dangerous. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Extremist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extremist/) [Kings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kings/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) ## Related quotes > [I'll say nothing against him. At one time the whites in the United States called him a racialist, and extremist, and a Communist. Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/i-ll-say-nothing-against-him-at-one-time-the-whites-in-the-united/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Anybody who takes Martin Luther King seriously has got to go beyond the standard understanding of who he was, has to connect those dots.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/anybody-who-takes-martin-luther-king-seriously-has-got-to-go-beyond/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [Martin Luther King wanted to be morally consistent and speak out against various things that were wrong, not just racism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/martin-luther-king-wanted-to-be-morally-consistent-and-speak-out/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [The American Dream is individualistic. Martin Luther King's dream was collective. The American Dream says, "I can engage in upward mobility and live the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/the-american-dream-is-individualistic-martin-luther-king-s-dream-was/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [We live in a world where people are fearful of extremism, but Martin Luther King would say he was always trying to keep the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/we-live-in-a-world-where-people-are-fearful-of-extremism-but-martin/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [One of the things I love most about Martin Luther King is that he was willing to sacrifice his popularity in favor of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/one-of-the-things-i-love-most-about-martin-luther-king-is-that-he-was/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [I think Martin Luther King would always keep track of collective insurgencies among poor and working people. He was concerned about the treatment of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/i-think-martin-luther-king-would-always-keep-track-of-collective/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [Martin Luther King was not a Marxist or a communist, but his radical love leads him to put poor and working people at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/martin-luther-king-was-not-a-marxist-or-a-communist-but-his-radical/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [Jesus Christ was an extremist for love, truth and goodness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/jesus-christ-was-an-extremist-for-love-truth-and-goodness/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Was not Jesus an extremist in love? - "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, pray for them that despitefully use you."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/was-not-jesus-an-extremist-in-love-love-your-enemies-bless-them-that/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [But though I was initially disappointed at being categorized as an extremist, as I continued to think about the matter I gradually gained a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/but-though-i-was-initially-disappointed-at-being-categorized-as-an/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [ People have to allow themselves to be used by God and Martin \[Luther King, Jr.\] committed himself totally to God's will and purpose and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coretta-scott-king/people-have-to-allow-themselves-to-be-used-by-god-and-martin-luther/) [Coretta Scott King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coretta-scott-king/) > [ Nonviolence with Dr. \[Martin Luther \]King is only a method. That's not his objective. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/nonviolence-with-dr-martin-luther-king-is-only-a-method-that-s-not/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Martin Luther King Jr., recognized bias when he saw it, knew what he was talking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-schwartz/martin-luther-king-jr-recognized-bias-when-he-saw-it-knew-what-he-was/) [Jack Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-schwartz/) > [I need to hear something about how he's going to bring people together in the spirit, hopefully, of Martin Luther King Jr., and if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-sharpton/i-need-to-hear-something-about-how-he-s-going-to-bring-people/) [Al Sharpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-sharpton/) ## More by Cornel West > [There has certainly been ugly, right-wing hatred targeting Barack Obama.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/there-has-certainly-been-ugly-right-wing-hatred-targeting-barack-obama/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [What is accurately portrayed is the rich humanity not just of Martin Luther King but of the movement, which was a multiracial movement. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/what-is-accurately-portrayed-is-the-rich-humanity-not-just-of-martin/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [I feel as if I have been blessed to undergo a transformation from 'gangster' to 'redeemed sinner with gangster proclivities.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/i-feel-as-if-i-have-been-blessed-to-undergo-a-transformation-from/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [“Like King, we need to put on our cemetery clothes and be coffin-ready for the next great democratic battle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/like-king-we-need-to-put-on-our-cemetery-clothes-and-be-coffin-ready/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [ “You can't really move forward until you look back. \[From Remaking America panel discussion at George Washington University\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/you-can-t-really-move-forward-until-you-look-back-from-remaking/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [When we think of globalization we are thinking in part of structures and institutions that have been developed over time and that have allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/when-we-think-of-globalization-we-are-thinking-in-part-of-structures/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [The challenge artists face today is whether to be an underground, unheard genius, or to dilute their art for the marketplace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/the-challenge-artists-face-today-is-whether-to-be-an-underground/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [The need of black conservatives to gain the respect of their white peers deeply shapes certain elements of their conservatism. In this regard, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/the-need-of-black-conservatives-to-gain-the-respect-of-their-white/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [For me, musicians are poets. Beethoven describes himself as a poet of tones, just like Coltrane's a poet of tempo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/for-me-musicians-are-poets-beethoven-describes-himself-as-a-poet-of/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [I don't draw any distinctions between forms of bigotry or forms of ideology that lose sight of the humanity of people. I can't stand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/i-don-t-draw-any-distinctions-between-forms-of-bigotry-or-forms-of/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [Barack Obama has domesticated the left in such a way that we feel as if we have no alternative but him...I refuse to accept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/barack-obama-has-domesticated-the-left-in-such-a-way-that-we-feel-as/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [Larry Summers, I think, he had a long history of arrogance and relative ignorance about poor people's culture and working people's culture and so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/larry-summers-i-think-he-had-a-long-history-of-arrogance-and-relative/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [The greatest gift you can give someone is the gift of inspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/the-greatest-gift-you-can-give-someone-is-the-gift-of-inspiration/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [You can see it in terms of the obsession on Wall Street with not just profits but greed, more profit, more profit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/you-can-see-it-in-terms-of-the-obsession-on-wall-street-with-not-just/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) > [Anybody who takes Martin Luther King seriously has got to go beyond the standard understanding of who he was, has to connect those dots.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/anybody-who-takes-martin-luther-king-seriously-has-got-to-go-beyond/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) [Explore all 400 Cornel West quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) ## More Extremist quotes > [Extremist perspectives win sympathy and recruits because they offer narratives that claim to identify deep injustices and enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-gahr-store/extremist-perspectives-win-sympathy-and-recruits-because-they-offer/) [Jonas Gahr Store](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-gahr-store/) > [Teenage girls are extremists who see the world in black-and- white terms, missing shades of gray. Life is either marvelous or notworth living. School…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/teenage-girls-are-extremists-who-see-the-world-in-black-and-white/) [Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/) > [We will not waste 30 years of our lives dealing with extremist ideas; we will destroy them today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammad-bin-salman/we-will-not-waste-30-years-of-our-lives-dealing-with-extremist-ideas/) [Mohammad bin Salman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammad-bin-salman/) > [It is a great mistake to think that the extremist is a better man than the moderate. Usually the difference is not that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/it-is-a-great-mistake-to-think-that-the-extremist-is-a-better-man/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [The wisest among my race understand that agitations of social equality is the extremist folly, and that progress in the enjoyment of all privileges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/the-wisest-among-my-race-understand-that-agitations-of-social/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [If you look at the people who are advising Rudy Giuliani it turns out that they seem to be all the people who were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-marshall/if-you-look-at-the-people-who-are-advising-rudy-giuliani-it-turns-out/) [Josh Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-marshall/) > [We see today that there is a growing understanding in the international community that the extremist regime in Tehran is not just Israel's problem,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-ahmadinejad/we-see-today-that-there-is-a-growing-understanding-in-the/) [Mahmoud Ahmadinejad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-ahmadinejad/) > [One stupid act of some stupid extremist puts us all down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amani/one-stupid-act-of-some-stupid-extremist-puts-us-all-down/) [Amani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amani/) > [The nations of the Middle East will have to decide what kind of future they want for themselves for their country and, frankly, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/the-nations-of-the-middle-east-will-have-to-decide-what-kind-of/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [The United States of America is engaged in a war against an extremist group of folks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/the-united-states-of-america-is-engaged-in-a-war-against-an-extremist/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [For some reason, I grew up generally believing that Japan and Korea were quite friendly. I do know that there is some bad history…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joichi-ito/for-some-reason-i-grew-up-generally-believing-that-japan-and-korea/) [Joichi Ito](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joichi-ito/) > [ There \[in Afghanistan\] is also a growing insurgency threat from al-Qaida, the Taliban and other extremist elements, some of which comes from the tribal… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-petraeus/there-in-afghanistan-is-also-a-growing-insurgency-threat-from-al/) [David Petraeus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-petraeus/) > [How do we deal with not just the acts of violence, but the extremist ideology that lies behind them? Because though the numbers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/how-do-we-deal-with-not-just-the-acts-of-violence-but-the-extremist/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [I lost most of my friends. Their parents had told them to stay away from me, because they said I was crazy, I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudette-colvin/i-lost-most-of-my-friends-their-parents-had-told-them-to-stay-away/) [Claudette Colvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudette-colvin/) > [There is no psychiatric pattern which can predict who becomes an extremist - but they are all frustrated with their reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deeyah-khan/there-is-no-psychiatric-pattern-which-can-predict-who-becomes-an/) [Deeyah Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deeyah-khan/) [Browse all 379 Extremist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extremist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Martin Luther King was an extremist of love.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Cornel West" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-love/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Extremist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-love/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cd/cornel-west-708_extremist_martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-l_3119888.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cd/cornel-west-708_extremist_martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-l_3119888.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4cd/cornel-west-708_extremist_martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-l_3119888.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Martin Luther King was an extremist of love.” — Cornel West", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Cornel West", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Martin Luther King was an extremist...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-love/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/martin-luther-king-was-an-extremist-of-love/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```