As NIU students celebrated Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday Monday and his contributions to the civil rights movement, some watched the NBA game between the Miami Heat and the Los Angeles Lakers. Some may have seen the highlights but the box score or the results of this game weren’t as important as what happened just before it.

Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal, former teammates on the three-time champion Lakers, shook hands and even embraced each other. The two were never close friends and there are countless rumors the two had physical altercations in the locker room and in practice.

The basketball stars split up after Shaq requested a trade from the Lakers. He left after head coach Phil Jackson didn’t return to the team after losing to the Detroit Pistons in the NBA finals.

What is so significant about this breakup-to-makeup soap opera in professional basketball is that Shaq would not even acknowledge Bryant by name or shake hands prior to tip-off. On Christmas Day, O’Neal didn’t even look in Bryant’s general direction but talked to every other Laker. It was pretty sad, to be honest – which is why the sudden reconciliation between these NBA stars is both wonderful and inspiring.

According to an ESPN.com recap of the game, Shaq heeded the advice of Hall of Fame Center Bill Russell “to make peace with Kobe Bryant, just as Russell did with Wilt Chamberlain.” Bryant said the reconciliation “made me feel good. … I think it’s good for the city of Los Angeles, good for the youth, being Martin Luther King Day.” Kobe may be on to something here.

That two bitter rivals could finally squash their differences in front of millions watching worldwide could be what this world needs today. Democrats and Republicans are throwing around words like “un-American,” “un-patriotic,” “baby killer,” and others which shut down any respectable debate about major issues facing this country. NBC’s Nightly News reported Sen. Hillary Clinton said the GOP runs the House of Representatives “like a plantation” and that the Bush administration “will go down in history as one of the worst that has ever governed our country.” These types of comments – no matter how true – only harm the relationships that Americans have with one another.

Rivalry is common also in the music industry. There are more beefs with hip-hop artists today than ever, it seems, in a music genre that is increasingly becoming more violent.

You see, it seems like we’re all drifting away from King’s vision of non-violence and unity among us all, despite our differences.

The good thing about sports is just how influential it is on society, and vice-versa. No one is expecting a bunch of peace treaties to rapidly arise due to two overpaid, pampered, and over-hyped NBA stars finally making peace. Or 50 Cent shaking hands with Ja Rule, Fat Joe, and Nas (even though Jay-Z and Nas squashed their beef Oct. 27). But maybe we could all learn something from this reconciliation. Maybe 2006 should be a year that we all just get along.