Martin Luther King's 'I Have A Dream'

Almost everybody knows Martin Luther King’s famous ‘I have a dream’ speech. However, do you know what his message was? First, let’s get some background information.

In America in the 1950s, the Declaration of Independence which declared that everyone was not to be judged based on their skin colour was far from reality. People of different skin colour to an ordinary white American were discriminated against. These people include Asians, Hispanics and blacks. The blacks were unhappy with this; they started fighting for equality; to have equal rights. After all, who would want to be treated unfairly?

Martin Luther King, Jr., was a driving force in the push for racial equality in the 1950s to 60's. In 1963, King and his supporters concentrated on Birmingham in Alabama. They protested non-violently by marching. This raised the ire of local officials who fired water cannon and set loose police dogs on the marchers, among them included teenagers and children. The bad publicity and break-down of business forced the white leaders of Birmingham to agree to several anti-segregation demands.

King helped organize a huge march in Washington, DC, on 28th August 1963. His partners in the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom included other religious leaders, labour leaders, and black organizers. The assembled masses marched down the Washington Mall from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial, playing songs from Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, and speeches by actor Charlton Heston, NAACP president Roy Wilkins, and future U.S. Representative from Georgia John Lewis were said.

King’s closing speech, the one which is well known today, was broadcasted live on major television networks. On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, King evoked the name of Lincoln in his "I Have a Dream" speech, which is credited with mobilizing supporters of desegregation and prompted the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The following year, King was given the Nobel Peace Prize.

King’s message was simple. He wanted people of different skin colour to be treated equally. I think that his speech was a wake-up call to the leaders of America. He was also very brave to do this since he was put in jail for the Birmingham march. Without this speech, people of different races would still be treated with discrimination. This speech had a key role in the fight for human rights and equal treatment of people. For all of this, King did not ask for anything in return. His courage helped wipe out the discrimination in America.

Links:
Text: http://www.mlkonline.net/dream.html
Video: http://www.mlkonline.net/video-i-have-a-dream-speech.html

References:
http://www.mlkonline.net/dream.html
http://www.usconstitution.net/dream.html