Fifty years ago, on the 28th August 1963, a Baptist minister,
Martin Luther King, gave a speech about jobs and freedom.
His pre-written speech was stunted and long when, from the crowd, the
singer Mahalia Jackson shouted, “Tell them about the dream Martin, tell them
about the dream.”
Martin Luther King put down his notes and, with fire and passion, spoke of his
hopes and vision for a truly free and democratic America. His speech and his dream
changed history. One man's vision, like Gandhi before him and Nelson Mandela
since, showed others that you should not accept any form of injustice.
But for me, the real American anti-apartheid movement started when one
wonderful lady named Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white person
on a bus journey; this was even the inspiration for King to become involved in
the movement.
I think it’s about time that we all had a dream; a dream where innocents
are not gassed in their streets to be used as pawns in a political struggle for
power. A dream of a world where education is given to all as a fundamental
right, where young girls are not threatened and shot because they demand to be
the equal of men.
A dream of a world where mind-crushing religion is substituted for free
thinking, giving people the right to believe in what god or belief they choose,
without fear of persecution. Where women and children are not exploited and
mutilated in the name of a god. A dream of a world where banks and conglomerates are replaced with a
method of free trade and industry; where wealth is distributed evenly, not
leaving 1% of the world with 99% of the world’s wealth. A dream of a world where in the 21st century people are not
covered in oil and burned in a 13th century act, because of their
sexuality. A dream of a world where my child and his child shall be free to live,
love and develop Where we can conquer the problems of over population,
starvation, bombings and retaliation!
These dreams may seem simplistic and naïve, but as the people of India, America
and South Africa
have proven in the past, DREAMS CAN COME TRUE!
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