At 6:01 p.m. on the evening April 4, 1968, while gazing to the distant horizon from the second floor balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, a single bullet from a lone assassin's high-powered rifle found its intended mark and the wanton attempt to extinguish the influence of one the brightest lights to illuminate mankind's better angels accomplished its intended purpose. Sixty-four minutes later, not unlike the most renowned and honored champion of human rights, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Jr. was pronounced dead and his memory and legacy also commended too soon "to the ages." This day, January 15, commemorates what would have been this great man of humble origin 78th birthday. It is a day in which all mankind, especially we Americans who claim to stand center stage in the guarantees of equality for all men, are called to remember the vision that Reverend King eloquently invoked as his dream that for a large segment of black Americans of his time had yet to realize. His death alone did not fulfill the dream, but his lingering and challenging words of hope continued to slowly open a new chapter in this country's history where indeed the color of a man's skin was no longer regarded as a hindrance, but a proud stamp of heritage, where ignorance and prejudice gave sway to acceptance and opportunity.
The progress since Reverend King's death has been painfully slow and in many instances bloody. But the battles fought and the minds persuaded continue to influence new generations to embrace Dr. King's dream not as something to be hoped for, but an ideal that must be nurtured and protected. For those of us who were witnesses to this man's greatness and to his tragic death, our role must be one of guardian, ever vigilant to call into rebuke those lingering pockets of prejudice and ignorance that are devised to demean the human spirit regardless of race, color or creed. We have an equally important responsibility to those generations yet to be birthed, that the impassioned spirit of Dr. King's dream may through them forever flourish and be the living benchmarks whereby equality and opportunity are measured.
Heralded as the best speech of the 20th Century, Dr. King delivered his "I Have A Dream" speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963, at the climatic conclusion of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Before a gather mass of over 200,000 civil rights supporters, Dr. King galvanized the audience with his eloquent plea for racial harmony and accord. A man of great vision, Dr. King wished to obtain his objectives not through acts of violence, but by peaceful means, stressing that which is inherently good in all mankind would win ultimate triumph over the forces of ignorance and hatred.
"But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm
threshold that leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful
place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirstfor freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever
conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not
allow our creative process to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again
we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force."
Dr. King's plea for civil restraint in the face of generations of institutional shackles, concluded with the memorable words oft quoted down through the years.
"When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all
God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and
Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing the words of the old Negro spiritual,
'Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty...Free at Last!'"
Dr. King's impassioned vision for freedom and equality for all citizens has in so many ways been realized. But this quest is not at an end, not should it ever be. There are still minds to be changed and hearts to be won if Dr. King's dream is to forever be a living and on-going reality. It must live on in each person who believes that in God's eyes each person is precious and has immeasurable worth. We each must carry forth the torch of freedom and equality so that every child born and yet to be born shall thrive in this nation that is deliberately blind to physical differences and "judges not by the color of their skin but the content on their character."
Let that be America's creed...in testimony and in deed.
