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FullMetalPatriot on Obama Photobombs History
Celebrate the dream today
The man had a dream.
And it took Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speaking up about his dream to wake up our country. (source)
In 1950′s America, the equality of man envisioned by the Declaration of Independence was far from a reality. People of color, blacks, Hispanics, Orientals, were discriminated against in many ways, both overt and covert. The 1950′s were a turbulent time in America, when racial barriers began to come down due to Supreme Court decisions, like Brown v. Board of Education; and due to an increase in the activism of blacks, fighting for equal rights.
Martin Luther King, Jr., a Baptist minister, was a driving force in the push for racial equality in the 1950′s and the 1960′s. In 1963, King and his staff focused on Birmingham, Alabama. They marched and protested non-violently, raising the ire of local officials who sicced water cannon and police dogs on the marchers, whose ranks included teenagers and children. The bad publicity and break-down of business forced the white leaders of Birmingham to concede to some anti-segregation demands.
Thrust into the national spotlight in Birmingham, where he was arrested and jailed, King organized a massive march on Washington, DC, on August 28, 1963. On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, he evoked the name of Lincoln in his “I Have a Dream” speech, which is credited with mobilizing supporters of desegregation and prompted the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The next year, King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
But even after his tragic murder, many of us still don’t get it.
Some people still don’t recognize the equality of black Americans.
And I’m talking about white AND black Americans.
Some whites still hate blacks and view them as inferior. Luckily, the majority of Americans recognize that stupidity for what it is.
But unfortunately, some blacks still hate themselves and view themselves as perpetual victims rather than recognizing their freedom and moving forward in a positive direction.
Thankfully, America is continuing to move in a good direction for Americans of all races and colors.
Although we still have our occasional problems with racism, I believe Dr. King would be pleased to see the progress and the freedom of opportunity all Americans enjoy now.
And I bet he’d have a few choice words for those among us who do nothing but stir up hatred for one another and attempt to keep an entire groups of people feeling victimized rather than realizing their great freedom and opportunity.
Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!
Our country isn’t perfect by a long shot. But we are definitely living the dream today.
Read and listen to the entire speech here.
Posted by FullMetalPatriot
12th gen. American, Constitutionalist, Harley-riding Texan, gun owner & NRA member, blogger, illustrator, Florida Gator alumnus. #TCOT
12th gen. American, Constitutionalist, Harley-riding Texan, gun owner & NRA member, blogger, illustrator, Florida Gator alumnus. #TCOT
