“Defending A King – His Life & Legacy”
Author: Dr. Karen Moriarty
“Defending A King – His Life & Legacy…” what a powerful story; especially to someone like myself who never followed the media frenzy that constantly surrounded Michael Jackson. I loved the majority of his music; I was impressed by the humanitarian work he provided globally but…I was uninterested in the rumor and speculation that continuously followed him around. Consequently, most of my knowledge about Jackson ended with whichever song of his wound up being played on the radio.
That’s not to say I was unaware of the many years of drama; it just means that I preferred not to speculate about that which I had no knowledge. I will admit, I did take pause when Jackson agreed to settle a sexual misconduct case outside of court in the early nineties. However, I wasn’t privy to the details of the case so I chose to shrug it off. In retrospect, settling probably wasn’t the smartest move on Jackson’s part but after reading “Defending A King – His Life & Legacy” I have a much better understanding of why he made that choice. I would even go so far as to say that Jackson’s true personality would never have allowed him to do anything but what he did even had he known then how it would make him a much easier target in future.
“Defending A King – His Life & Legacy” was a great book. It was thoughtful, honest, well-written and contained substantiated information from people close to Jackson / reliable sources. “Defending A King – His Life & Legacy” provides the reader with a heartbreaking look at the last few years of Jackson’s life. After a devastating five month trial where Jackson’s entire life was put on public display; where he was ridiculed, belittled, scorned and more is it any wonder that Jackson lost his usual “spark” and possibly even his faith in humanity?
Millennia ago someone with Jackson’s message would have been hailed as a prophet… He would have traveled the globe; spreading his message of love and acquiring followers wherever he went through the power of his charisma, words and actions. In today’s world of fast paced living coupled with incredible technological advances can we really say that’s not what he was? During his short life Michael provided countless messages of love, hope and peace and shared them with everyone. He frequently traveled the world in an attempt to raise our awareness; he had his “followers” aka fans and he acquired more with each country he visited.
I only hope that the people and companies currently capitalizing from Michael Jackson’s fame also remember to “give something back.” While I doubt that Michael would ever begrudge anyone the happiness that can be borne from their successes I do think he would feel disappointment if his ever present lessons of love, compassion and caring were overlooked and ignored.
In closing, a phenomenal and eye-opening read. A huge thank you to Moriarty for having taken the time to write “Defending A King – His Life & Legacy” as well as a big thank you to all who came forward and shared their remembrances with her.