In 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. gave his legendary “I Have A Dream” Speech that set the stage for Civil Rights activists all over the nation; it was a milestone for colored folk as a people and a race giving the hope that was missing in their daily fights for freedom. In their fights to be recognized as humans and not some unknown species--humans that loved and cared for one another as everyone else did during that time. It was a trivial time in the movement and Dr. King stepped out on faith, with God on his saying encouraging everyone to stick together as a nation to fight this war against hate. As we all know, Dr. King had a dream that one day we will all live in a nation where each individual is not judged by the color of his skin, but the contents of his character. I’m happy to say that Dr. King’s dream has somewhat come true; indeed, America is much better now than it was in 1963. African Americans have evolved in society through education, culture, and politics; there’s biracial marriage, billionaires of color, and not to mention, Mr. Barack Hussein Obama, America’s first black president. America has come a long way but, as the saying goes, still has a long way to go.
I catch myself crying ever so often knowing this nation’s history and seeing how much we’ve grown. I feel blessed to live in a country that accepts me for who I am, that encourages me to strive for greatness, and supply me with the resources necessary to accomplish my dream- for a colored female, that’s such a milestone. For me to know how my ancestor’s suffered, -how women watched their families being torn apart every day, how they silently obeyed their masters no matter what they were asked, how they cried themselves to sleep at night not knowing what tomorrow may bring. And for myself, to wake up every morning well rested at one of the best PWI’s in the south… well, I believe that deserves a “hashtag blessed” in someone’s twitter bio.
However, America isn’t perfect- not even close. Yes, MLK had a dream and I’m happy to see that most of it has come true. I still lay awake at night with fears, though. I fear that this nation is digressing in unimaginable ways, as if we’ve forgotten our values; I fear that life as I know it may end and the generation that I live in has no intentions of putting a stop to it; I fear for the 3rd and 4th graders that have only known Barack as their president and now the uncertainty of this next presidency could change everything for them; I fear for their innocence, that it may become hatred; I fear that hatred will become a social norm; I fear for homosexuals and Muslims and blacks and college kids that fearfully cried themselves to sleep the night of November 9th; I pray for those that joyfully cried themselves to sleep; most of all, I pray for America and Trump’s administration. I hope for the sake of this country he does a damn good job.
The 2016 election was a nasty one and that’s politics but I believe some things should have been left unsaid. I won’t go into detail but I will say that throughout these next four years, I hope Trump remembers America history and that Dr. King’s speech will hold dear to his heart.
I hope that these nightmares of mine never become déjà vu.
