I Have a Dream
Author: Martin Luther King
Today, I am happy to join you all in this event that will become a historic event in the history of our country. The greatest demonstration ever held for freedom.
One hundred years ago, a great American - whose symbolic figure we stand today - signed the Emancipation Proclamation. The promulgation of this important law was like a huge beacon of hope for millions of black slaves who were burned in the flames of injustice, like a joyful dawn that ended the long night of imprisonment.
However, 100 years later, black people still have not gained freedom. 100 years later, black people are still hobbling miserably under the yoke of segregation and racial discrimination. 100 years later, black people still live on an isolated island of poverty in a sea of ??material prosperity. 100 years later, black people still weep in the corners of American society and still feel that they are homeless in their homeland. So we are here today to bring this appalling situation to light.
In a sense, we came to the nation's capital to cash a check. When the founders of our Republic wrote the glorious pages of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they signed a promissory note that every American can inherit. This promissory note promised all men—white and black—the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Today, however, it is clear that America has defaulted on this promissory note to her citizens of color. Instead of honoring this sacred debt, America began giving Black people a bad check—a check that bounced back marked “insufficient funds.” But we never believe that the bank of justice will go bankrupt. We cannot believe that this country's vast reservoir of opportunity will be underfunded.
So let's cash this check. This check will give us precious freedoms and the security of justice.
We have come to this sacred place to remind America that these are urgent times. Now is not the time to take things easy or take the sedative of incrementalism. Now is the time to realize the promise of democracy. Now is the time to step out of the dark, desolate valley of segregation and onto the sunny path of racial equality. Now is the time to lift our nation out of the quicksand of racial injustice and onto the rock of brotherhood. Now is the time for true justice for all of God’s children.
Ignoring the urgency of this moment would be fatal to the country. Until the glorious autumn of freedom and equality arrives, the scorching summer of black people’s reasonable and plaintive complaints will not pass. 1963 was not an end, but a beginning.
Those who hope that black people will be satisfied simply by venting their anger will be disappointed if the country continues to go its own way. There will be neither peace nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted citizenship. The whirlwind of rebellion will continue to shake the foundation of our nation until the glorious day of justice.
But there is something I must say to those who stand on the perilous threshold to the Palace of Justice. As we strive for legal status, we must not do anything wrong that leads to crime. We must not drink the bitter wine of hatred to quench our thirst for freedom.
We should always fight with decency and discipline. We cannot allow our creative protests to degenerate into violent actions. We should constantly rise to the lofty realm of using the power of the soul to deal with the power of the body.
The new miraculous fighting spirit sweeping through black society should not lead us to distrust all white people - because many white brothers have realized that their fate is closely linked with ours, and that they Their freedom is closely related to our freedom. The fact that they are here today at the rally is proof of that.
We cannot do it alone. When we act, we must keep moving forward. We cannot retreat. People who are passionate about the civil rights movement are asked, "When will you be satisfied?" We will never be satisfied as long as black people remain the victims of unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We will never be satisfied as long as we are turned away from highway motels and city hotels after the exhaustion of travel. We will never be satisfied as long as the negro's basic range of movement is limited to the narrow ghetto to the larger ghetto. We will never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their individuality and dignity by a "Whites Only" sign. We will never be satisfied as long as the Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and the Negro in New York feels that he has nothing to do with it. No, no, we will not be satisfied until justice flows like water and righteousness like a fountain.
I am not unaware of the hardships some of you have gone through to get here. Some of you have just stepped out of your tiny cells. Some come from areas where their pursuit of freedom has been battered by storms of persecution and rampant police brutality. You have gone through many hardships and hardships. Keep working hard and believe: innocent people who suffer will be saved in the end.
Go back to Mississippi; Go back to Alabama; Go back to South Carolina; Go back to Georgia; Go back to Louisiana; Go back to the ghettos of our northern cities Go with the ghettos.
Know that this can and will change. We must not sink into the abyss of despair.
Friends, today I want to tell you that despite the current difficulties, I still have a dream. This dream is deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its founding creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."
Me I dream that one day, in the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves can sit at the same table as the sons of former slave owners, as close as brothers.
I have a dream that one day even Mississippi, a desert state sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into a green oasis of freedom and justice.
I have a dream that one day my four little girls will live in a country where they will be judged not by the color of their skin, but by the quality of their character.
I had a dream today.
I have a dream that one day there will be a change in Alabama—despite the state’s governor still spouting talk about challenging federal statutes and refusing to enforce them—where black children can and white children walking hand in hand as brothers and sisters.
I had a dream today.
I dream that one day, the deep valleys will be bridged, the mountains will be leveled, the cross roads will become smooth roads, and the winding paths will become thoroughfares, and the glory of God will reappear, and all living creatures will come to visit it.
This is our hope. This is a belief I will take with me to the South. With this faith, we can mine the stone of hope from the mountain of despair. With this faith we can transform the cacophony of quarrels in this country into a sweet symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we can work together, pray together, fight together, go to jail together, and defend freedom together, because we know that one day we will be free.
On this day, all of God's children will be able to sing this song with new meaning:
My country, dear land of the free, I sing for you. This is the place where my ancestors died, this is the place where the early immigrants were proud, and let the voice of freedom ring through every hill.
If America is to be a great nation, this must happen. So let freedom ring from the mighty heights of New Hampshire!
Let freedom ring through the mountains of New York State!
Let freedom ring from Pennsylvania’s Allegheny Peaks!
Let freedom ring through Colorado’s snow-capped Rocky Mountains!
Let freedom ring through the graceful peaks of California!
No, not just that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain, Georgia!
Let freedom ring through Lookout Mountain, Tennessee!
Let freedom ring from every mountain and every mound of Mississippi!
Let the voice of freedom ring through every hill!
When we let the voice of freedom ring, when we let the voice of freedom ring in every big village, every state capital and town, we can speed up the arrival of this day. Then all of God's children, black and white, Jew and Gentile, Jesus and Catholic, will be able to join hands and sing that old Negro spiritual: "Free at last! Free at last! Thank the Almighty God, we are finally free!"
Attachment: Character introduction
Martin Luther King (1929-1968 AD), an American black lawyer and a famous leader of the black civil rights movement. He was arrested three times and assassinated three times in his life. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. Shot to death by racists in 1968. He is known as one of the eight most persuasive speakers in the past century. In 1963, he led 250,000 people to march on Washington to fight for freedom, equality and employment for black people. Martin Luther King delivered this famous speech at a rally.
Attachment: English original ----------------------------i have a dream by martin luther king, jr.delivered on the steps at the lincoln memorial in washingtond.c. on august 28, 1963five score years ago, a great american, in whose symbolic shadowwe stand signed the emancipation proclamation. this momentousdecree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of negroslaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice.it came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night ofcaptivity.but one hundred years later, we must face the tragic fact that the negro is still not free. one hundred years later, the life of the negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles ofsegregation and the chains of discrimination. one hundred years later, the negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. one hundred years later, the negro is still languishing in the corners of americansociety and finds himself an exile in his own land. so we havecome here today to dramatize an appalling condition.in a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check.when the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the constitution and the declaration of independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every american was tofall heir. this note was a promise that all men would beguaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.it is obvious today that america has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, america has given the negro people a bad check which has come back markedinsufficient funds. justice is bankrupt. we refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. so we have come to cash this check -- a check that willgive us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. we have also come to this hallowed spot to remind america of the fierce urgency of now. this is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. now is the time to rise from the dark anddesolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racialjustice. now is the time to open the doors of opportunity to allof god's children. now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. it would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of theme and to underestimate the determination of the negro. this sweltering summer of the negro's legitimate discontent will notpass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom andequality. nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning.those who hope that the negro needed to blow off steam and willnow be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. there will be neither rest nor tranquility in america until the negro is granted his citizenship rights. the whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges. but there is something that i must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which 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 thirst forfreedom 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 protest to degenerate into physical violence. again and again we mustrise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soulforce. the marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the negrocommunity must not lead us to distrust of all white people, formany of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence heretoday, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up withour destiny and their freedom is inextricably bound to ourfreedom. we cannot walk alone.and as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall marchahead. we cannot turn back. there are those who are asking thedevotees of civil rights, "when will you be satisfied?" we cannever be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. we cannot be satisfied as long as thenegro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one.we can never be satisfied as long as a negro in mississippicannot vote and a negro in new york believes he has nothing for which to vote. no, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not besatisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousnesslike a mighty stream.i am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of greattrials and tribulations. some of you have come fresh from narrowcells. some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution andstaggered by the winds of police brutality. you have been theveterans of creative suffering. continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.go back to mississippi, go back to alabama, go back to georgia,go back to louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. let us not wallow in the valley of despair.i say to you today, my friends, that in spite of thedifficulties and frustrations of the moment, i still have adream. it is a dream deeply rooted in the american dream .i have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and liveout the true meaning of its creed: "we hold these truths to beself-evident: that all men are created equal."i have a dream that one day on the red hills of georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveowners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood.i have a dream that one day even the state of mississippi, adesert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice andoppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.i have a dream that my four children will one day live in anation where they will not be judged by the color of their skinbut by the content of their character.i have a dream today.i have a dream that one day the state of alabama, whose governor's lips are presently dripping with the words of interposition and nullification, will be transformed into asituation where little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walktogether as sisters and brothers.i have a dream today.i have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, everyhill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall seeit together. this is our hope. this is the faith with which i return to thesouth. with this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. with this faith we will beable to transform the jangling discords of our nation into abeautiful symphony of brotherhood. with this faith we will beable to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.this will be the day when all of god's children will be able tosing with a new meaning, "my country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee i sing. land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring." and if america is to be a great nation this must become true. solet freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of new hampshire.let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of new york. let freedom ring from the heightening alleghenies of pennsylvania!let freedom ring from the snowcapped rockies of colorado!let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of california!but not only that; let freedom ring from stone mountain ofgeorgia!let freedom ring from lookout mountain of tennessee !let freedom ring from every hill and every molehill ofmississippi. from every mountainside, let freedom ring.when we let freedom ring, whem we let it ring from every villageand every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will beable to speed up that day when all of god's children, black men and white men, jews and gentiles, protestants and catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the oldnegro spiritual, "free at last! free at last! thank godalmighty, we are free at last!"