Thursday, January 15, 2015 would have been the 86th birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a Baptist preacher and pastor, a celebrated orator, a self-proclaimed drum major, a Morehouse man, a Nobel Peace Prize winner. Each year the Good Street Baptist church pauses along with the nation to pay tribute to the life of Dr. King rather than a memorial commemorating the death of this icon. Banks close their doors, school children are given a day off, parades of bands and dignitaries crowd the streets, banquets and speeches highlights the day that even temps to arouse the curiosity of his haters and undying critics. This national holiday is a tribute befitting of a king, or president or great general but…for a dreamer? No, not for just a dreamer but rather for this dreamer who for the love of God and for the sake of humanity gave his last full measure of devotion. To this end, the recent Hollywood release, Selma, is a startling reminder of the fear that enslaved a people for generations. It chronicles the depth of hate, the height of savagery, and breath of brutality too cruel to be imagined much less experience. Nonetheless, Emmett Till did, so did Goodman, Chaney and Schwemer as well as the four little girls at Sunday School in Montgomery, Alabama (Carol McNair, Cynthia Wesley, Addie Mae Collins and Carol Robertson) and Medgar Evers! Armed with a message of non-violence undergirded by a scriptural mandate,it was Martin Luther King, Jr. among others who stood against the hate mongers, murders, and vicious men without heart or conscious. He symbolized our collective courage and for a moment in time, we stood triumphantly as one with him and basked in the glory of victory. Some even rushed to pin the last verse of the so called anthem of the Civil Rights movement to read…”We have overcome”.
A faint echo of this miracle of liberation lingers still with some surviving contemporaries. This time each year a grim reminder is played out in poems, platitudes and tributes on the stage of Black American who with a short memory of historic pain wallows in the comfort of success insulated from reality. Thanks to Martin and others of his rack, “we salute you and thank you” for the journey of the last fifty years which has been serene and even tranquilizing. However, a short while ago we were awaken by a thunderous cry of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown and Eric Gardener who along with more than 20 Black unarmed youth whose lives were snuffed out. Unlike those in the midst of the struggle who offered up their lives for a cause celeb, these youth under our protective care were not ours to give; not for progress, nor for freedom or any other cause no matter how just it may seem! Moreover, we have played by the rules, we have kept the pledge of non-violence and remained peace loving. But we stand helpless and hopeless and left barren to ploys of those who we trust to protect us. Our spirit is disquieted and our countenance fallen and we have no one else on whom to call….but God…the God of our weary years, the God of our silent tears, the God who has brought us thus far on the way; the God who hast by his might, led us into the light and will keep us forever in the path we pray.
Thank you Martin! Happy Birthday!
Dr. Jesse W. Jones
Professor
Education
D.Sc. Arizona State University 1993
Ph.D. Arizona State University 1963
M.S. New Mexico Highlands University 1956
B.S. Texas College 1954
Professional Experience
Professor of Chemistry Baylor University 1988
Organic Chemistry
The primary focus of my research is the synthesis of organic compounds of biological significance. These studies fall into two main two main categories. Natural Products and Structural Elucidation. Many minor nucleoside components have been identified as a result of the elucidation to the primary structures of an increasing number of transfer ribonucleic acids and the hydrolysis of various soluble ribonucleic acids as well as from other sources. These minor nucleoside components differ in a variety of ways from adenosine, cytidine, thymine and guanosine. For example, N-methyl groups substituted at N-1 and N-7 as well as 2- and 6-methylamino groups are common modifications in purine nucleosides. More elaborate structural variations are noted in N6-(D2-isopentenyl)adenosine. This area of research poses a challenge in recognizing these structural variations and determining the impact of such variations on the stability and its reactivity of the molecule . This research emphasis includes both isolation and structural determination of certain natural products containing a nitrogen heterocyclic nucleus. In addition, compounds modeled after natural products are synthesized to elaborate upon their chemical and biological activity. Also of interest is the design and testing of biochemical models for investigating the role and function of these modified purine nucleoside. Both in vivo and in vitro systems are included in such studies. General Synthetic Studies Several areas of unusual nitrogen heterocycles are continuing subjects for investigation. Many of these substances are designed and synthesized because of their possible impact on biological systems. Of interest are potential agents for the treatment of viral diseases and cancer as well as general medicinal purposes. The early synthetic antimalarials drugs and the anticancer drug, 6-mercaptopurine along with AZT and cyclovir are products of this general investigative approach. While primary emphasis is placed on the purine and pyrimidine nuclei, fused ring compounds and other unusual heterocycles are also candidates for these studies.
