I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King - Essay Example

I Have a Dream In Washington, Martin Luther King stood before 250,000 black and white demonstrators and declared that hisdream was to see his four children live in a country where they would not be refereed by their skin color, but rather by their content of their character. By focusing on the spirit that the civil rights movement portrayed, King made a speech that managed to resonate not only in America, but in other parts of the world as well. Though the speech was regarded as being very powerful, various historians ask whether the speech is the greatest in history (McFarnon). This paper will discuss the impact that Martin Luther King’s speech I Have a Dream has towards portraying an era of racism, discrimination and injustice that perpetrated against African American in the US. Discussion Any historian may judge the King’s address as being the greatest in history, though it is classified as among several epochal speeches in the history of America. The speech reveals some of the greatest gifts that King possessed where he was able to address different groups of people with a single voice. He managed to revive the souls of crusaders and awaken the consciences of the general public. King was capable of speaking in an eloquent manner about the experiences that African Americans went through and awaken the American spirit in a simultaneous manner (McFarnon). The goal of his speech was to give new meaning to old words as well as clichés, which were initially rooted in the ideas of the American dream. The canonization of the speech that King made harkened his evolution to become a political radical. The march at Washington laid claims regarding the economic aspirations of the African Americans, which still remained out of reach for them. It illustrated the criticisms regarding the American structure, which dominated his thoughts as well as the political and social conflicts that were witnessed in the 1960s. Regardless of all the pessimism that he was shown, Martin did not lose hope that America would at one time fulfil its promise (Schlueter 22). In 1963, approximately 250,000 million demonstrators, both white and black converged in Washington to march for jobs and freedom. King portrayed an inclusive vision where the country would be united against religious and racial divide. He emphasized the determination and idealism of the civil rights movement, which developed an unending moral and political momentum for over a century. Though most of the commentators argue that the March on Washington has insignificant influence pertaining to the initial passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, they do not deny that King led the nation to a state of consciousness (Schlueter 24). For most of the strategists who were close allies of King and his activists, they did not regard this speech as the greatest in history. The speech was subdued in an oratorical manner, since it lacked the signal for changes of pace and timbre which portrayed the traits of the southern Baptist tradition, which King served as part of. With regard to the content, the most influential section of King’s speech is not the dream, but rather an earlier passage which indicated the major reason which was associated with the gathering when the march was being carried out on Washington. Here, African Americans had been provided with a “bad cheque” during a time when they were purporting their emancipation of 100 years, which they were demanding Washington to pay them (Schlueter 32). The notion of a dream led to consternation. The confreres who belonged to King regarded it as being hackneyed to a point that it started being treated as a cliché. Most of the radical students at the time were amazed when they witnessed a black individual dreaming of a future that was way far off to reach. Most of those people who had not come into terms with King’s speech were indifferent regarding based on where the genius of the speech lay. While in the White House, John Kennedy stipulated that King was good in his speech. For instance, most of the democrats were highly impressed by his statesmanlike tone and level headed demeanor. In his speech, King was able to show sensibility, dignity, and was also a man who was challenging to disagree with (Fleming 56). Today, much of the speech by King has been greatly forgotten. The ‘I have a dream’ portion is the only one that attracts attention. Emphasizing on a theme, which had rehearsed during earlier speeches, King knew that one day the country would rise up to live up to its promises, particularly since all men are created equal. He finished with a vision where by black men, Jews, Gentiles, white men, catholic, and Protestants would rise up and say “free at last.’ The speech showed strong fusion for religion and patriotism thereby transforming the speech from good to great, whose influence can be realized after hearing it. A number of onlookers stipulated that the speech by King had the potential of moving one from the earth. However, before King went up the stage, a student at Nonviolent Coordinating Committee denounced Kennedy’s government for failing to protect the organizers of civil rights from the savage violence that was brought forth by southern segregationists. King managed to implore America to wake up when he called forth for a non-violent revolution. The main goal was to segregate the south into a thousand pieces and then unite them again in democracy and God’s image (Fleming 62). Most people stipulate that the Speech Martin Luther King made is one of the greatest in the history of America and the world. It expresses that the ideal of equality should be treated as timeless, though it connects America to various founding values, particularly in the case of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. The leaders had agreed that all men are created equally and have particular inalienable rights. The overall goal of the speech was to facilitate the realization of the American civil rights act, though it advocates for equality beyond American borders (McFarnon). Conclusion The speech by Martin Luther King is dominated by Christian ideals which African Americans witnessed as they were guided divinely to Canaan, which served as the Promised Land where they could get access to freedom. It also advocates for freedom among the Muslims. While compared to the inaugural addresses that presidents make, the impact of the speech is rare and thin. Here, the rivals to the speech by King are the four freedom address by FDR as well as Abraham Lincoln’s address in 1863. These ideals deal with equality and freedom. Also, there are two major things that give King’s speech an edge over other areas. Firstly, it was delivered by a black person as opposed to a white establishment. It has also benefited the mass media with respect to disseminating the message beyond America. Despite these initiatives, incidences of inequality are evident even today, particularly among people of different races. Works Cited Fleming, Mulcahey Alice. Martin Luther King, Jr: A Dream of Hope. Washington DC: Sterling Publishing Company, 2008. Print. McFarnon, Emma. "Is Martin Luther Kings ‘I have a dream’ the greatest speech in history?" 2013. History Extra. web. 20 September 2014. . Schlueter, Nathan. One Dream Or Two?: Justice in America and in the Thought of Martin Luther King, Jr. New York: Lexington Books, 2002. Print. Read More