Dad’s Whiskey Burger One fateful day on February 1, 1968, two African-American public sanitation employees were pulled into the refuse barrel of a city garbage truck and crushed. This resulted in a wide strike, during which 1,300 Memphis public employees protested the poor and dangerous working conditions they faced every day. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke in support of the strike, in his famous “I’ve been to the mountaintop” speech — the night before he was assassinated. Today, Martin Luther King Jr. Day is often celebrated as no more than another holiday. But it’s important to note that many of those taking the day off work would oppose what he stood for that day in Memphis. Modern parallels can be drawn between the Memphis strike and the contemporary “Fight for $15” campaign — a divisive campaign across the right. Bloody crushing-related injuries may be much less common today, but the need for advocacy for public sanitation workers remains. The increase in workplace safety can be largely attributed to the passing of the Occupational Safety and Health Act — an often overlooked component of Dr. King’s legacy. Today, the OSHA is in danger of being repealed, via the current Secretary of Labor. Dr. King also served a large role in passing laws like Title VII, prohibiting discrimination against African-Americans, and had a hand in providing equal rights to the LGBTQ and disabled communities. Ingredients: • 4 (6–6 ½ ounce) hamburger patties • ¼ cup whiskey • 3 garlic cloves, chopped • 4 strips bacon • 8 thick slices American cheese • 2 large Vidalia onions, peeled, cut in half, and thinly sliced • 2 tablespoons olive oil • 2 tablespoons reserved bacon fat • 1 teaspoon salt • 4 hamburger buns Directions: 1. Cook bacon until crisp. Remove and cool. Reserve 2 tablespoons bacon fat. 2. In a large skillet, combine olive oil and bacon fat, then add onions. Cook over low heat. Add salt and turn onions often for 30–40 minutes until caramelized. 3. Place whiskey and chopped garlic in a shallow dish and add hamburger patties. Marinate for 15 minutes, then flip and marinate another 15 minutes. 4. Grill burgers over medium-high heat until cooked to desired doneness. 5. Add two slices of cheese to each burger in the last minute of grilling. 6. Put hamburgers on buns, then top with a large spoonful of caramelized onions. Top with bacon. Recipe inspired by Mantitlement.com. Social progress has certainly occurred in some forms in the past years, but in many ways, African-Americans are worse off than
when the Civil Rights Act was passed. Economic inequality has dramatically increased, partly due to the gutting of state workers’ compensation laws.
It’s important to consider Dr. King’s legacy of support for workers of all stripes. Workplace safety is more than a luxury — it’s a human right.
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