11. Heritage of Words (I have a Dream) - Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

I Have A Dream

Writer : Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

“I have a dream” is a historical speech delivered by Martin Luther King Jr., who is renowned all over the world for his policy of passive resistance and oratorical skills.

The campaign of Martin Luther King against color and racial discrimination began in 1950. It reached its historic climax in 1963, leading a mass of two hundred thousand people both blacks and whites from Washington Monument to Lincoln’s memorial. He delivered this memorable speech on 28 August 1963.

Martin Luther King begins his speech paying tribute to Abraham Lincoln, who signed the emancipation proclamation 100 years ago. This historical document has brought a light of hope among the negro slaves ending a long night of captivity. They had hoped that they would be free and that they would not be discriminated anymore. But a hundred years after the document has been signed; the Negros were still not free. They were still crippled by the chains of discrimination and manacles of segregation and still compelled to live a miserable life among wealthy white Americans. They were still compelled to live as an outsider in their own country.

So Martin Luther King says that they have gathered at the capital of the nation to cash check. When the leaders of the USA wrote the words of the constitution, they were signing a promissory note, but instead of granting the Negros the right promised by the constitution, the government of the USA has given a bad check.

Martin Luther King is not ready to believe that the bank of the USA is bankrupt, so he urges the government to fulfill the demands of all the negros without any delay. Failing to meet their requirements would be fatal for the nation. There will be neither peace nor rest in the nation until their rights are granted.

Martin Luther King reminds his people that they should not carry out any violent activities in the course of the protest. Martin wants to conduct the struggle in discipline and dignified way combining their physical force with the spiritual one. He also, asks his people not to distrust all the white people because some of the whites have been helping the negros to get equal rights. They cannot move alone as their destiny has been tied with that of the whites.

Answering a question, “When the negros will be satisfied, he says that they will not be satisfied?” He says that they will not be satisfied as long as the police continue brutality against them, they are deprived of getting rest at the hotels of the cities and motels of the highways, are deprived of their voting rights, equality, justice, and freedom. With the hope that their situation will be changed one day, he asks his people to go back to their respective places and work for the change.

In spite, of the difficulties and frustration of the movement, he has a dream that is deeply rooted in the American dream. He has a dream that the nation will be able to live according to the creed that all men are treated equally. He has a dream that the sons of farmers, slaves and those of the masters will be able to sit together at the table of brotherhood. He has a dream that his four children will be treated not in terms of the color of the skin but in terms of the content of their character. He has a dream that the black boys and girls will be able to walk together with white boys and girls as brothers and sisters. He has a dream that everyone will get freedom, justice, and equality. He is going to have his dreams fulfilled organizing a peaceful mass demonstration and passive resistance.

If America has to become a great and free nation, every part of the nation and the people living there should be free. Only then the people of different colors, races, and religions will be able to join hands and move together singing the song of freedom.

I Have a Dream Summary 1

Writer : Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

SUMMARY

‘I Have A Dream’ is an unforgettable speech delivered (given) by Martin Luther King to millions of American blacks and whites on August 28, 1963. This speech represents the hopes and dreams of all American blacks who have been struggling for their rights and freedom. Though the American constitution and the Declaration of Independence have promised equal rights, justice and freedom to all the blacks and whites, this is not implemented in practice. In American Societies, there is still strong racial discrimination, injustice, hatred and other inequalities between whites and blacks. The Blacks are hated, neglected and tortured in practice. In American societies, there is still strong racial discrimination, injustice, hatred and other inequalities between whites and blacks. The Blacks are hated, neglected and tortured because of their black skin. They are deprived of their rights, freedom, equality, and justice. They are treated to be slaves and are exiled in their own country. They live a very poor and miserable life among the rich whites. Only the whites enjoy the rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Luther king addresses the American Blacks and says that they should continue their struggle until they establish equality, peace, and brotherhood in America. However, their struggle should be without violence. He says that they should fight for their rights without causing physical violence which may cause bitterness and hatred. They should follow the path and philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. If they keep on struggling in a disciplined way, they will achieve their aims. Luther king hopes that one day; the chains of hatred, racial discrimination, injustice, and Inequalities will be broken. The new sun will rise with the rays of liberty, equality, peace, and brotherhood.

Luther King urges that there should be an immediate change in the conception of whites. Racial and color discrimination will weaken the foundation of America. Luther King says that his dream is the dream of America. His dream is the dream of freedom, justice, and equality. The color of the skin is not important. What is important in humanity? Therefore one day, all discrimination and inequality will disappear. All the blacks and whites will walk together joining hands as brother and sister. At last, not only blacks, all the American people will be free. There will be sweet music of liberty, justice, and equality all over America.

"I Have a Dream" speech Summary 2

Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his "I Have A Dream" speech on August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington, a major civil rights demonstration.

• King references the US Constitution and Declaration of Independence, which declared that America would be a land of freedom where all men are created equal. He then states that this promise of freedom has not been achieved for Black Americans.
• King repeats the phrases "I have a dream" and "with this faith," sharing his vision for a more equal society and reiterating his belief that such a future is attainable.

·         King begins his “I Have a Dream” speech by declaring that this occasion will be remembered as the “greatest demonstration for freedom” in United States history. He then evokes Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and references the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, a document that gave hope of a better future to many African Americans. Despite the abolition of slavery and the time that has since passed, Black people in America are still not free; the aftershocks of slavery are still felt through segregation and discrimination in the United States. 

·         King refers next to the signing of the Declaration of Independence, describing the document as a “promissory note” whose promise has not been fulfilled for African Americans. Therefore, King says he has come to Washington to chide the United States for “defaulting” on this promise in regard to Black Americans who have not been granted life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The bank of justice, King says, surely still has money in it, and there is a debt to be paid to Black Americans.

·         King goes on to declare that the time has come to “make justice a reality” for all in the United States. He describes the situation as “urgent,” stating that the growing discontent among Black Americans will not dissipate until equality is won. There will not be peace in America until African Americans are granted their rights as American citizens. Though the situation is urgent, King stresses that his fellow African American protesters should neither resort to violence nor blame all White people, for there are White civil rights protesters among them in the audience, fighting alongside them. The struggle for equality must continue until police brutality is no longer a concern for African Americans, hotels no longer turn them away, ghettos are not their only option, and voting rights are universal—until justice is served. 

·         King acknowledges that protesting has been difficult for many. Some of those present have recently been in prison or have suffered other persecutions. He promises that their struggle will be rewarded and encourages his listeners to return to their home states filled with new hope. King famously declares, “I have a dream,” and describes his hope for a future America where Blacks and Whites will sit and eat together. It is a world in which children will no longer be judged by their skin color and where Black and White alike will join hands. King calls upon his listeners to look to this vision of America to give them hope to keep fighting and asserts that when freedom is allowed to “ring” from every part of the nation, the United States will be what it should have always been, and justice will be achieved.

 

Extended Summary 

Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech on August 28, 1963, at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom at the Lincoln Memorial. The March on Washington was a monumental day in the civil rights movement and, at the time, was one of the largest peaceful protests in the world. The goals of the March were to create greater economic equality for people of color, especially Black Americans, and to protect the right to vote. These topics—economic equality and voting rights protection—feature heavily in King’s speech. At a broader level, his speech urges the protesters present to have hope for the future of the United...

Some Important Questions And Answers From “I Have A Dream.”

Question. Explain King’s analogy of the bad check. (Paragraph 3 and 4).

Answer. In paragraph 3 and 4 of the speech, I have a dream delivered by Martin Luther King Jr. uses an analogy of bad check to explain how the constitution of USA has failed to give the promises to the negros.

The constitution is written permission like cheque issued by a bank that promises to give the cheque bearer the amount of money stated in the cheque, but the constitution of USA had become a bad check for the negros because they have not been granted the rights promised by it.

Here the speaker is comparing the constitution of the USA with a bad check, the US government with a bank and the Negros with a check bearer.

Question. What does the term “Dream” refer to in Martin Luther king’s speech?

Answer. In Martin Luther king’s speech, “Dream” refers to the American dream. It means his expectation and needs to avoid racial discrimination between white and black peoples.

He has a dream of equality and justice, brotherhood and freedom and serenity. He dreams that the sons of farmers, slaves, and sons of the masters and owners will be able to sit together at the table of brotherhood. All his four children will be able to work and walk together without any discrimination. All the black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers.

He has a dream that the people of different colors, races, and religions will be able to join hands and move together singing the song of freedom.

Question. The speech “I have a dream” by Martin Luther King is regarded as an unforgettable speech. Why? Elaborate.

Answer. The speech I have a Dream by Martin Luther King is regarded as an unforgettable and memorable speech in the history of American human rights. “I have a dream” is a historical speech delivered by Martin Luther King Jr. who is renowned all over the world for his policy of passive resistance and oratorical skills. To listen to this speech more than 200 thousand black and white people gathered so this is a historic and unforgettable speech.

I have a dream includes almost all problems of injustice and inequalities faced and rooted in American society especially against the black negros. Negros were not given educational rights, social rights, voting rights, and any other basic Human rights.

Martin Luther King has labeled American people while many white peoples were also present in the protest. Martin sentimentally expresses that America would be rich and prosperous only if all the blacks would also be rich and prosperous. American black had been unable to use even constitutional rights like voting rights. When the leaders of USA wrote the words of the constitution, they were signing a promissory note, but rather of granting the Negros the right assured by the constitution, the state of USA has given a bad check.

This speech is also unforgettable because this encourages the black not to be offensive and destructive to the whites and the whole USA. He requested the black to lead the peace movement against the state.

Question: What is the apparent (exact) purpose of the speech of Martin Luther King Jr.? Explain King’s analogy of a bad check (cheque).

Answer: The apparent purpose of King’s speech is to get the black people their rights of freedom, equality, and justice avoiding racial injustice based on the color of skin. Although the constitution of America promises equal rights to its entire citizen, black people have been deprived of enjoying the rights and get the victim of social segregation and discrimination. Therefore, Martin Luther King Jr. Delivers this speech demanding justice for the black people. King makes an analogy (comparison) between promises of an American constitution and a bad check. Though the constitution of America promises equal right rights to the entire citizen irrespective of color and creed, America has failed to pay her black citizen the rights promised in the constitution. They are given bad check i.e. false promises by architects of American constitution. If there is an insufficient amount in the bank out, the cheque of the higher amount issued against this account is not enchased and returned unpaid such cheque is considered as a bad check. Similar way although the constitution of America guarantees equality for all, the black citizens are turned down from getting justice in America. Therefore, the king compares the promises made by the American constitution with a bad check.

 

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