48 years ago the world renowned Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial poised and prepared to deliver a speech that would be echoed through the annals of time. In his normal and rhythmic tone of speaking, he began by looking at the history of “these United States”.
Behind Dr. King stood the great Mahalia Jackson. In the middle of his delivery, history tells us that mother Jackson said “Tell them about the dream Martin”. As if instantly reminded of a deep-seated message that was planted by God Himself, Dr. King began with those powerful words “I Have a Dream”. The crowds erupted with excitement, edification, and enlightenment as they rode the rollercoaster of words Dr. King shared on that day. I’m sure that many of them left that place, if wanting to leave at all, motivated to do and be all that they could in order to make a better nation.
Somewhere in history we fell off the bandwagon. We still here the words, and for a moment they spur up something in us that motivates us. But as fleeting as a winter in Florida, the emotions seem to never last long enough to cause any action. In fact, we’ve moved so far from action to the point of inaction. We’ve now turned the dream into a nightmare.
Dr. King had a dream that encouraged by the constitution; our nation would realize that we are created equal. Yet, it still baffles the mind when 7 white males can brutally beat, run over with their truck and kill a older black man and our legal system sets them all free with the exception of 1. I say we’ve turned the dream into a nightmare.
Dr. King had a dream that one day we would all be able to sit down at the table of brotherhood. Yet, every time congress puts its own interest over the survival of this nation, I say that we’ve turned the dream into a nightmare.
Dr. King had a dream that true freedom and justice would reign supreme. But when we punish the user of a “poor man’s” drug more than we do the user a “rich man’s drug, then we’ve turned the dream into a nightmare. Dr. King had a dream that one day people wouldn’t be judged by the “content of their skin, but by the content of their character”. Yet, when we allow an unequivocal disrespect of a President based on the underlying notion of his skin color, then we’ve turned the dream into a nightmare.
Dr. King had a dream that through equality, all people would be able to become educated together. As I walk through the buildings of my law school, I see the disparity in numbers between people that look like me, and those that are of a lighter skin tone. Every time we spurn an educational opportunity because it’s too hard or challenging, we turn Dr. King’s dream into an American nightmare.
The dream of Dr. King has become relegated to the centerpiece for an annual day off from work. When it should be a never-ending flame that causes the eternal hearers to move into action that will bring honor to the dream.
I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to redeem the dream. I’m ready to fight for equality, and to empower those that are honored with equality to make the most of it. I’m ready to fight for the day when my son won’t need affirmative action to supplement his many qualifications for a job. I’m ready to fight for a day when we understand it is our differences that make us powerful, and not our likenesses that make us special.
We Had a dream, and I’m ready to make it a reality. Are you?
Just me
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