42 BECOMING KING such hope in the face of overwhelming oppression since the early days of slavery. The theme was not new, but Mays articulated this hope in edu- cated language, something King would adopt for himself. In numerous school papers and sermons, King emphasized the ultimate death and de- struction of evil by articulating a hope-filled faith in the face of violence, unjust laws, and oppressive economic institutions. He even developed a quotation-laden refrain that he used countless times in sermons and speeches to justify hope: “There is something in the universe that justi- fies Carlyle in saying, ‘No lie can live forever.’ There is something in this universe which justifies William Cullen Bryant saying, ‘Truth crushed to earth will rise again.’ There is something which justifies James Russell Lowell in saying, ‘Truth forever on the scaffold, wrong forever on the throne, yet the scaffold sways the future.’ There is something in the uni- verse that justifies the Biblical writer in saying, ‘You shall reap what you sow.’” True to his religious heritage, King clung to hope even in un- friendly circumstances. Throughout his ministry, King preached a Gospel grounded in an optimistic hope for the ultimate triumph of God in the 13 face of any challenge. Mays’s hope did not prevent him from seeing some of the damage that racism had caused. He mined the psychological implications of dis- crimination, recognizing that one of the greatest challenges facing blacks was their deeply rooted sense of inadequacy, leading him to call segrega- tion “a badge of inferiority.” He cited the devastating consequences of slavery, segregation, and discrimination to explain the particular challenge to self-esteem that blacks often faced. Like Mays, King also explored the detrimental psychological effects experienced by many African Americans, noting, “it’s so easy for us to feel inferior because we have lived so long amid the tragic midnight of injustice and oppression.” Both Mays and King 14 recognized that feelings of inferiority often led to passivity and fear. Over and over again, Mays challenged his readers to overcome their trepidation, calling fear “the greatest enemy of mankind.” He believed that as long as black southerners were under the influence of fear, they would lack the necessary boldness and resolve to sustain a movement for change. When fear rules, progress becomes stunted, justice is deferred, and equality proves evasive. The courage that is so essential to significant social advancement can easily fall prey to crippling cowardice. King took