Martin Luther King Jr, “I Have A Dream.”
In 1963, at the height of the Civil Rights movements that defined the decade, Martin Luther King Jr gave one the most famous and influential speeches in the United States, “I Have A Dream.” The words he spoke that day rang true among people of color around the country who lived under oppressive regimes and suffered great discrimination. The sixties’ civil rights movement arose on the heels of the awakening during the Harlem Renaissance, which gave a voice to the African Americans and enabled massive mobilization. Today, many African Americans face similar circumstances like the ones Martin Luther King Jr spoke of. In his speech, King said, “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” (King, 1963). Currently, African Americans still live under oppressive systems of authority that continue to discriminate against them.
The ongoing Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests are a testament to the oppression and a call for change, permanent change. BLM represents the same struggles against racial discrimination, which King addressed in his speech in 1963. Furthermore, King’s words ring true today because he insisted that African Americans’ discontent will not end until there is justice. King said, “It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer negro’s discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality” (King, 1963). The BLM protests are similar to the Civil rights movement of the sixties and continue to fight for equality and an end to discrimination.
References
King, M. L. (1963). I Have A Dream Speech.