As much as I agree that SOME stuff on FR gives conservatives a bad image, people aren't really exaggerating on this thread.
It depends on how old you are and where you went to school...
But there are many locales where more will be taught about MLK (and Harriet Tubman, etc.) than Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, JFK, and Reagan COMBINED in elementary school (particularly) but also in Junior and Senior High. The most extreme school districts will add a heavy dose of Malcolm X too but I personally did not experience this in the 70s.
That's an obvious indication that educators BELIEVE MLK was the most important person in US history, even if they don't say so in so many words.
What strikes me as the most strange is that a considerable portion of the whites who line up to pander and kiss ass do not even seem very believable in their adulation. I don't think they are sincere. What's more, I don't think the blacks think they are sincere either. For that matter, I don't think half the blacks give a hoot either. I think that there is a certain percentage of insecure whites who think they have to prove that they aren't prejudice and a certain percentage of blacks that thrive on seeing the insecure whites grovel and pander. To me it's a very strange phenomenon. It makes whites look like closet racists who are continually trying to prove that they are not. It makes the blacks look like they are so self conscious of their blackness that they need to see the world bow down to their leader once a year. Civil rights? Sorry. I don't think civil rights are a big concern these days. Not only does everyone have them, if anything, today's blacks enjoy special consideration. Can you say affirmative action? The whole thing is a joke.
"Did you say something about my momma?"
"No, I didn't say something about your momma"
"So you're calling me a liar?"
"No, I'm not calling you a liar, honest!"
"I think you were talking about my momma"
"No, really! I don't even know your momma."
Etc.