"My role is to comfort the disturbed, and disturb the comfortable"

[cowgirl]

Who said this?

A quick google shows that it refers to the role of art, preaching, or prophets.

Perhaps MLK said it but my work firewall won’t let me see the page. Perhaps it was a graffiti artist from Bristol.

Anyone know?

[Fear_Itself]

A slightly different version is attributed thusly

“The job of the newspaper is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.”

The famous quote is about a hundred years old and can be traced to the work of Finley Peter Dunne, one of the great journalists of the day, who wrote about politics and culture in the voice and persona of an Irishman named “Mr. Dooley.” Think of him, if you will, as a precursor to Dr. Ink.
“Th newspaper does ivrything f’r us. It runs th’ polis foorce an’ th’ banks, commands th’ milishy, controls th’ ligislachure, baptizes th’ young, marries th’ foolish, comforts th’ afflicted, afflicts th’ comfortable, buries th’ dead an’ roasts thim aftherward.”