A Dream Deferred?

Martin Luther King, Jr. via last.fm

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is a legend. I especially esteem the memory and ministry of Dr. King because learning about him made me feel proud of my history and heritage. Studying his life “had me feeling like Black was the thing to be” in the words of the late, great Tupac Shakur.

As we celebrate the legacy of Dr. King this month, we also celebrate his contributions to the progress of the Black race in the 1960s. Unquestionably, we have made great advancements, but have we arrived? Has Dr. King’s dream of racial harmony and equality been realized? Is the struggle over? I insist that the answer to all of these questions is no!

Some people will argue that Barack Obama‘s inauguration one day after the 2009 King Holiday was a symbol that Dr. King’s dream had finally come true. But I disagree. There is a difference between the fulfillment of a dream and the furtherance of a dream. There is a distinction between the arrival of a people and the advancement of a people. Have we come a long way? Sure. Have we arrived? No. Are African American people living under better conditions now than we were a half a century ago? Yes. But do race, class, and gender still play a role in cases of discrimination in America today? If King were alive today, I don’t think anyone would be telling him that his dream has been realized. In fact, I think he would still be fighting for justice and equality.

Think about the conditions of the Black community. What would King say about senseless murders in our communities? What would he say about Black on Black crime? What would he say about the number of single parent homes? What would he say about the divorce rate? Drug infested ghettos? Teenage pregnancies? The increasing dropout rate among high school boys? What would he say about racism, discrimination, police brutality, and racial profiling? I dare say that Dr. King would not be pleased with the state of the Black community today. As long as there are discriminatory practices in higher education and corporations, the dream has not been realized. As long as there is overcrowding in highly concentrated urban schools, the dream has not been realized. Until young teens understand that there are consequences to their actions, whether its sexual intercourse, drug use, gang activity, or wasted opportunities, the dream has not been realized. When this nation is more concerned with foreign policy than fighting poverty in our own backyard, the dream has not been realized. If our nation is more concerned with incarceration than education, the fulfillment of King’s dream a long ways off in the distance.

I challenge you to do your part in bringing King’s dream to fulfillment. Ask the questions that he would ask and to do the things that he would do. Become the leader that you admire in him. Receive the baton of leadership and represent the people who need you the most: the disadvantaged, the underprivileged, and the needy. I am going to commit myself to doing the same thing, but don’t wait for me to do it. I may not make it. Don’t wait for King to come back, because it’s not going to happen. You must do it. And you must start today and start where you are. Look around you. See what changes you can make in your community. See how you can represent the voiceless. Because if you don’t do it, who will? If you don’t do something, what will become of our communities? What will become of us?

1 Comment

Alicia Young on March 23, 2010 at 10:20 pm

The Dream in Reality
On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech in Washington DC to promote his vision of racial equality and the end of discrimination. Common sense seems to dictate that after 47 years, his dream for America would be fulfilled today. The US has definitely made progress from 1963, but not completely. Overall, parts of Dr. King’s dream has been accomplished, but by no means mastered.
In Dr. King’s address in Washington, said that our nation was to lift itself from “the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.” Has racial injustice truly been lifted off the United States? I do not believe it fully has. In fact, the US Census Bureau verifies that in 2003, 27 percent of college graduates were white, while only 17 percent of graduates were African-American, and 11 percent Hispanic. That’s a 10 percent difference! It is not merely coincidence. Similar numbers appear decades before the 21st century. Another example is the unemployment rate. Blacks reached the unemployment rate of 12 percent in 2006, while whites only suffered a rate of a little over 5 percent. I suppose affirmative action can only help with this problem so far. Sadly, people are still sometimes judged by their color and not their character.
Of course, many would probably disagree with this assertion that unemployment rates are the sole reason that Dr. King has yet to see his dream come true. Truth be told, King also told listeners of his speech that if people did not relent when faced with police brutality, the situation would change. Obviously, minorities are not in constant fear of having white men in white sheets burning crosses, or being sprayed with fire hoses by cops, but the situation is not perfect. Just recently in 2009, a white police officer beat a middle-aged African-American man suffering from schizophrenia with his fist and a baton. The victim did not even resist arrest. This is very disappointing. In other scenarios that are not as extreme, minorities mysteriously are being pulled over for what police officers supposedly call “suspicious activity.”
Yet again, the naysayers may have their objections. One will say, “Our country is led by an African-American. His name is Barack Obama!” That is correct! That is proof that Dr. King’s dream for racial equality has advanced quite well. I myself have not had a personal encounter with racism, but have seen how judgmental America can be. When I was using the popular search engine, “Google,” I typed in the phrase “Why are” plus a letter or two more, and “Google suggestions” were made for what to search for. I gradually generated a frown as I received a bombardment of stereotypes upon stereotypes about blacks, whites, Hispanics, Asians, and others alike. I suppose that our country does not always care to sit at the table of brotherhood.
Although I do claim that Dr. King’s vision is not a reality yet, it is far from a fantasy as well. Our schools are desegregated, minorities are not suffering harassment for the most part, and today’s generation more than likely has never nor will ever see a “Whites Only” sign. Personally, I believe that Dr. Martin Luther King would beam after seeing the significant steps toward racial equality.

Alicia Young on March 23, 2010 at 10:20 pm

The Dream in Reality
On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech in Washington DC to promote his vision of racial equality and the end of discrimination. Common sense seems to dictate that after 47 years, his dream for America would be fulfilled today. The US has definitely made progress from 1963, but not completely. Overall, parts of Dr. King’s dream has been accomplished, but by no means mastered.
In Dr. King’s address in Washington, said that our nation was to lift itself from “the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.” Has racial injustice truly been lifted off the United States? I do not believe it fully has. In fact, the US Census Bureau verifies that in 2003, 27 percent of college graduates were white, while only 17 percent of graduates were African-American, and 11 percent Hispanic. That’s a 10 percent difference! It is not merely coincidence. Similar numbers appear decades before the 21st century. Another example is the unemployment rate. Blacks reached the unemployment rate of 12 percent in 2006, while whites only suffered a rate of a little over 5 percent. I suppose affirmative action can only help with this problem so far. Sadly, people are still sometimes judged by their color and not their character.
Of course, many would probably disagree with this assertion that unemployment rates are the sole reason that Dr. King has yet to see his dream come true. Truth be told, King also told listeners of his speech that if people did not relent when faced with police brutality, the situation would change. Obviously, minorities are not in constant fear of having white men in white sheets burning crosses, or being sprayed with fire hoses by cops, but the situation is not perfect. Just recently in 2009, a white police officer beat a middle-aged African-American man suffering from schizophrenia with his fist and a baton. The victim did not even resist arrest. This is very disappointing. In other scenarios that are not as extreme, minorities mysteriously are being pulled over for what police officers supposedly call “suspicious activity.”
Yet again, the naysayers may have their objections. One will say, “Our country is led by an African-American. His name is Barack Obama!” That is correct! That is proof that Dr. King’s dream for racial equality has advanced quite well. I myself have not had a personal encounter with racism, but have seen how judgmental America can be. When I was using the popular search engine, “Google,” I typed in the phrase “Why are” plus a letter or two more, and “Google suggestions” were made for what to search for. I gradually generated a frown as I received a bombardment of stereotypes upon stereotypes about blacks, whites, Hispanics, Asians, and others alike. I suppose that our country does not always care to sit at the table of brotherhood.
Although I do claim that Dr. King’s vision is not a reality yet, it is far from a fantasy as well. Our schools are desegregated, minorities are not suffering harassment for the most part, and today’s generation more than likely has never nor will ever see a “Whites Only” sign. Personally, I believe that Dr. Martin Luther King would beam after seeing the significant steps toward racial equality.