Monday, January 19, 2009

Thoughts on a 'Dream'






"One hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land." Even though Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was talking about one hundred years after the Emancipation Proclamation, we are still facing these same problems today, what would be 144 years later.

I am sad to say that today is the first time that I watched Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech in its entirety. But I am grateful that I watched it. It is powerful, and it is applicable to today.

We should not be satisfied. This work is not finished. There is still inequality, police brutality, an increase in segregation in schools, an enormous economic and educational disparity between blacks and whites. My dream is Dr. King's dream, that one day people "will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."

Our hearts must change.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

thanks for posting...we're pretty much riding on his back now for all the freedoms we now enjoy.

Alicia Vial Beesley said...

Hey, nice post, wish I could watch the video in school, censorship sucks.

Can you shoot me your e-mail again when you get a chance. Mine is aliciavial@gmail.com
Tucker and I are hoping to be married on May 2nd. we can't be sure at all if that is realistic yet at this point, but we are thinking if everyone can keep the date open, some how there may be a chance that we will have an answer back from the first presidency by then.