Tomorrow the 44th President of the United States of America, Barack Obama, will publicly take the oath of office, again. As the first African American to become the president, many view him as the fulfillment of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream for America. The timing of his second inauguration on the holiday celebrating Dr. King’s birth is no coincidence.
Springfield Christians have hoped to see Dr. King’s dream come true since he first made the speech in 1963. Listening to his speech again tells us what his dream actually was. “I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.” This dream has been achieved in some cases, but not all.
“I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.” While Mississippi has mellowed in its prejudice and injustice, not all Mississippians want this, yet.
Today many do judge others by the character like King hoped for, but not all accept these words. “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” Even in Springfield, we have more to learn from these words.
Our country is to be commended that we have come a long way to living the dream. We should be proud that race was not a reason not to vote for a president for many. We should continue to work for the dream that Dr. King told us of. We still have that dream.
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