Martin Luther King Jr. wrote this line in his 1958 book “Stride Toward Freedom,” his account of the 1955-1956 Montgomery bus boycott. The comment was aimed directly at people who, at the time, were urging Black Americans to stop protesting in the name of keeping the peace. His point was clear and precise: A society can appear calm while in fact being profoundly unfair. The distinction King makes is between negative peace — the mere absence of tension or conflict — and positive peace, which requires active, structural justice. For King, silence did not equal harmony, and compliance was not contentment. Real peace demands that people are treated fairly, that systems work equitably, and that dignity and justice are extended to all.