On Monday, we celebrated Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – remembering the contributions of the civil rights leader. In his most famous speech, delivered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., King spoke of his dream – a dream of racial equality. He spoke at a time when African Americans suffered indignities such as being refused service in restaurants, being forced to ride in the back of public buses, to drink from black only water fountains, and much more. While our country has made great strides in the areas of race relations and racial equality, few can deny that racism still exist – in some areas of the country more than others.
It’s fitting around this time of year to reflect on MLK’s life and work. One question that we often ask is whether or not his dream has been realized. Have we come far enough? Have the barriers to racial equality been torn down sufficiently enough? If King was alive today (he would be 83-years-old this year), would he be satisfied with the progress that has been made? Has King’s dream been realized?
Is it important that we set aside a day to remember the work of Dr. King? What is the best way to commemorate his life? As students, as a school, should we be doing something to remember King and educate the youth of today about his impact on our nation's history?
What do you think? Avoid simple answers. Give me real thought. Read the comments of those posting before you. Come back after you post, and continue to keep up with additional posts until the deadline. I want a real conversation. Invite your parents to read the blog, and they can even comment. Enjoy!
Note: I'm including King's "I Have a Dream" speech.
The Witness: From the Balcony of Room 306
(32-minute film that we watched in class)
The Witness: From the Balcony of Room 306 from Marc Altshuler - Human Music on Vimeo.
Important: Be sure to check back daily as I will be posing new questions and thoughts in the comments section.
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26 comments:
I believe that MLK's dream has been recognized but could still be better than it is now. We as a nation should work harder on the racism fact. There are still barriers out there waiting to be found and fixed. It may not be just African Americans and Whites it could be Europeans, Chinese, Japanese. Our nations problem is that we don't care as much as we should. Also, if MLK was still alive he would most likely not be satisfied and would be helping other races, too. I believe that we need to work harder on our nations racism!
i agree with Rachel, MLK's dream has been recognized and has been put to use and come a long way in our society. Yet there is still racism in our world. And probably more than we think in the United States alone. If he was still alive i think he would be very happy with the progress and change there has been yet i think he will also not give up because he knows that still out there, there is still racism. Yet MLK changed a lot of history that is one of the greatest changes made.
I totally agree with Kiley, I believe that MLK dream has come true and I think he should have seen the change he has made. Even though, we can thank MLK for creating a more equal US their is still race factors and judgement but again, i beleve people will remmber MLK and eventually all racisim wll come to a end and we can only thank MLK! FOR WE WILL NOT BE JUDGED!!!! <3
Thank you MLK for making the world a better place for all race.
Sydney. Swift Creek is a good example of an anti-racist school. It's fantasic how far the country has come to prevent racial segregation. I think having an african american president is a great example of how this nation has overcome rascist barriers. No, nothing is perfect yet, but from the view of a student i think this school is fantastic with all of its equalities.
The Nation is still a little racist, but i do not believe that we are a racist nation. In MLK's day we were violent, mean, and did deny unalienable rights. Today we do some racist things without thinking, talking to mexicans in horribly choppy voices, asking people that look gangsta about the ghetto, ect. Being a middle class white chick I have know idea who this feels and don't feel I am in a position to tell people what to do. I can't tell haters to stop hating cause that never works and i can't tell so-to-say the "minority" to stop making a big deal about it because I am not the one being hurt. Although, I personally believe that if there have been more suicides caused by bullying in the last 5 years than hate crimes committed in the last 10 years, one is more important than the other. Our world still is racist yes, but not really in a very harmful way, most people find stereotypes hilarious and even fake being them sometimes. I believe that if Martin Luther King Jr. was alive today he wouldn't frown on the white man, but as a reverend on some of todays trends and cultures. I think he would preach something along the lines of Man in the Mirror:
I'm Starting With The Man In The Mirror I'm Asking Him To Change His Ways
If You Wanna Make The World A Better Place
Take A Look At Yourself, And Then Make A Change
Disclaimer: I copied the lyrics fromhttp://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/michaeljackson/maninthemirror.html
AND I AM NOT RACIST!!!!!!!
Sydney made a good point about us having an African American president it really shows how our country has changed about racism.
I agree with Emma, and i think that Dr. King's 'dream' means that we should not criticize(sp?)or seperate our selves away from people just because of the color of their skin but by the content of their character(sp?).
I think Martin Luther King's dream has indeed been realized but we haven't come all the way out of racism and I think that it will always be around, even if it's just a pinch. I think if MLK was alive today, he would be happy with how far we have come along but he might give a speech every once in a while about racism. That day changed the world by a whole lot and should definetly be commemorated in many different ways. Children in all schools should learn the importance of Martin Luther King's dream and how he changed the world.
I belive he would be satisfied but he would want more, for us to continue to break more and more racial barriers, and to try harder not to discriminate. Although MLK's "I had a dream" speech helped, it could have gone farther and it still can
I believe that MLK's dream has not been achieved. As Rachel said its not only african americans but chinese and mexicans. also MLK would not be satisfied, even at 83 he would still be fighting racial equality. The barriers are still there and we should be working to remove.
I believe that we have come a long way since MLK started his marches, speeches, etc. Back then, African Americans could not even walk into a store without being thrown out or arrested. I agree with most of the bloggers. We're not done yet, but we're close. I think that if MLK were here, he would not be satisfied. There is still such thing as racial profiles and other stuff. I think some people in this world just don't get it. All MLK is trying to say here is that everybody is equal! Everybody has a personality and uniqueness and that shouldn't be destroyed by the way somebody looks. We are all born a different person and we should be PROUD of ourselves. MLK would agree that the world is not perfect, but people can start by being themselves and kind to others. What I've seen in those horrible videos about racism made me cry. It is not just for a living person to be treated like this. I think the people back then were just trying to make themselves feel better by taking it out on people that were different than them. Still- I mean seriously!- people of the 20th century! Even though MLK has passed, his dream doesn't end there. Us kids of the 21st century need to make things better and fix the mistakes of the past including racism. I think MLK would be really happy to see that happen!
This is controversial to my other post but I have a link for every one: hulu://w/319318
Note: doesn't deal with segregation or MLK but more of how we tend to blow things out of proportion ect. Enjoy!
I agree with Rachel. I believe that MLK's has changed the world but not all the way. For example, when people apply for jobs discrimination is used against the different races. We as a nation should work harder to get along like a nation. We are heading on the right road but are not quite there. If MLK was alive still, I think he would be happy with how much we have approved because no one is perfect and we can almost impossible to get rid of racism.
I also agree with Emma.
"If you want to make the world a better place
look at yourself,Then make a change in the world"
Hey, it's Kathryn from 2nd period. I agree with Emma and Sydney; our country has come a long way from what it once was, but we still have to work as individuals to be accepting of everyone. Dr. King had a dream, but it's up to us to carry it out and make the world a better place.
I basicly agree with everyone here. We have cam a long way and he would be proud for us! And I agree with RAchel that he will not be satisfied and he will try to make things more better! It is really vital if we keep together!
I agree with everyone on most parts except some people's opions on how MLK would react to the changes we have made. I feel lik MLK would be satisfied we as a nation hav overcome many challenges dealing with race and racial profiling. Although some people still judge people on their race a majority of america has accepted people as equal amd judge each other on their characteristics and personalities.
i think MLK's dream was reconized.people are still racist though.
I think that we as a nation have not been striving to actually fulfill his dream. a lot of people are criticized for their race and MLK would not approve . i agree with Rachel aand David, not only african americans have been segregated because of their race. the barriers still exist between different nationalities and people who are so narrow minded to think one race is better than another don't deserve to even be mentioned. To be strong and powerful like we(America) think we are we need to stop being racist. MLK's dream deserves to become reality, not just a hope.
oh wait, I kinda think we've gotten better about the whole racism thing, Sydney, but we still have a long way to go.
I think that MLK's dream has been used but it hasent applied to everyone like it should. When we think of MLK's dream we think of changing the world so it is no racist but it only applies to black but I think it should apply to everyone or else it's not fair. Just like the japenese or chinese or europeans or anybody shouldn't hat e each other just because their diffrent than them, and it should apply to everyone not to hate not just white people ca't hate but everyone!
Hey guys it's Adrianna from 6th period. Like Anna said, I just want to say thank you Dr. King!
I agree with Micaela. When people think of MLK they generally describe him as a great civil rights leader who fought for the rights of African Americans. But although he didn't directly apply his speeches and protests to Hispanics or CHinese or any other ethnic or racial group, the outocme of his leadership did effect everyone and i personally think that"s all that matters- everyone is treated equal. I also agree with Adrianna and Anna.... THANKS MLK :)
i think MLK's dream was partly acheived because there still are racist people in the world
I kind of agree with Sarah about how maybe MLK would be happy with the way things are. The only thing is that there are still many people in this world who have lived a long time and are acustomed to being racist. The problem is not totally fixed.
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