This week marks important milestones in our country's history. On January 20th we will have reached 50 years since John F. Kennedy was sworn in as our nation's president. It marks the 82nd birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., and the 25th year we have recognized his efforts for civil rights. And it marks yet another year that I can't help but wonder - what would they think if they had lived to see 2011? Would they be proud of the foundations laid while they toiled in their own tumultuous time? Would they have advise for the youth of our today, as they had for the youth of their day? And those youth of yesteryear - are they better for the circumstances they witnessed? Will our youth remember the works by those in the past to make their future easier?
I was born in 1976 - the Bicentennial for our nation. I was born into a family with two parents, still married, in Durango, Colorado. My skin color is white; I am so pale white I have been jokingly called clear. I have never felt what it was like to have someone hate me based on this fact simply because the culture and environment I grew up in didn't support such behavior. I am sure there were outside forces that may have created drama elsewhere, but in my bubble I was unaware someone being darker than me was somehow reason to treat them differently. I was unaware that prejudice was an actual issue due to my parents who raised me. I didn't witness tragedy of hatred first hand. My only glimpse at such evil is really through entertainment by movies, news footage from a different era, and others who have shared their own experiences. In my life, Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream was my reality. But, at the same time, I am not so ignorant to the issues that others have experienced in the past, or those that are still occurring today. Just because I didn't have this issue pressing upon me does not mean I do not recognize the issues we still face today.
In the time period of when this man was at the forefront of social issues, Barack Obama would have never had the opportunity to become president of their United States. In the time period of when this man was at the center of civil injustice, another man such as Thurgood Marshall would have never been appointed to a Federal Supreme Court Justice position. A man such as Colin Powell would have never held Secretary of State for our nation during their time. There are countless other examples that can be rattled off, but the fact of the matter is these men were able to know the Declaration of Independence options of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness without the work, the life, and subsequent death of Martin Luther King, Jr and others of his time.
This man was men of action, men of understanding, men of power, and men of great controversy. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a man who saw an injustice, attacked that injustice, and hopefully would have been proud to see the strides we as a nation have made. I am sure there would have been much more work for this man and others who were not blessed with seeing the harvest of their own seeds planted into the lives of millions while alive.
While we live in a nation where we recognize others as our equals in theory, there are still areas that do not recognize this in practice. It is one thing to say "All men are created equal" but quite a different manner to believe this, follow this, and do this on a day to day basis. In order to pursue this dream of those before us, we must continue the work daily.
It is not enough to say everyone is equal. It is teaching our own children of indifference, and the need to continue moving forward. It is our own actions against others that display and teach volumes to them. Charity starts at home, just as acceptance, love for others, and the ability to see the dream continue. Without this, their work will have been in vain. Without this, we are nothing more than an attribute we were born with, and none of us can change.
What would Martin think today? I would hope he would see a nation in a better place due to his work. I would hope he would recognize those who stood beside him as necessary to the fight he waged, and I would hope he would see a nation filled with youth ready to do better things than that of previous youth.
I was born in 1976 - the Bicentennial for our nation. I was born into a family with two parents, still married, in Durango, Colorado. My skin color is white; I am so pale white I have been jokingly called clear. I have never felt what it was like to have someone hate me based on this fact simply because the culture and environment I grew up in didn't support such behavior. I am sure there were outside forces that may have created drama elsewhere, but in my bubble I was unaware someone being darker than me was somehow reason to treat them differently. I was unaware that prejudice was an actual issue due to my parents who raised me. I didn't witness tragedy of hatred first hand. My only glimpse at such evil is really through entertainment by movies, news footage from a different era, and others who have shared their own experiences. In my life, Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream was my reality. But, at the same time, I am not so ignorant to the issues that others have experienced in the past, or those that are still occurring today. Just because I didn't have this issue pressing upon me does not mean I do not recognize the issues we still face today.
In the time period of when this man was at the forefront of social issues, Barack Obama would have never had the opportunity to become president of their United States. In the time period of when this man was at the center of civil injustice, another man such as Thurgood Marshall would have never been appointed to a Federal Supreme Court Justice position. A man such as Colin Powell would have never held Secretary of State for our nation during their time. There are countless other examples that can be rattled off, but the fact of the matter is these men were able to know the Declaration of Independence options of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness without the work, the life, and subsequent death of Martin Luther King, Jr and others of his time.
This man was men of action, men of understanding, men of power, and men of great controversy. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a man who saw an injustice, attacked that injustice, and hopefully would have been proud to see the strides we as a nation have made. I am sure there would have been much more work for this man and others who were not blessed with seeing the harvest of their own seeds planted into the lives of millions while alive.
While we live in a nation where we recognize others as our equals in theory, there are still areas that do not recognize this in practice. It is one thing to say "All men are created equal" but quite a different manner to believe this, follow this, and do this on a day to day basis. In order to pursue this dream of those before us, we must continue the work daily.
It is not enough to say everyone is equal. It is teaching our own children of indifference, and the need to continue moving forward. It is our own actions against others that display and teach volumes to them. Charity starts at home, just as acceptance, love for others, and the ability to see the dream continue. Without this, their work will have been in vain. Without this, we are nothing more than an attribute we were born with, and none of us can change.
What would Martin think today? I would hope he would see a nation in a better place due to his work. I would hope he would recognize those who stood beside him as necessary to the fight he waged, and I would hope he would see a nation filled with youth ready to do better things than that of previous youth.
August 28, 1963
The March on Washington
Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I have a dream"
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