Fifty years ago today, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. shared his soaring vision and hopeful version for the United States of America. He revealed it, of course, at the mall in Washington, D.C., through his rousing “I Have a Dream” speech, which crystallized the civil rights movement. His 16-minute, gospel-tinged testimonial ranks as possibly the most powerful display of oratory skills from the 20th century. But is it still relevant a half century later? Does the dream truly continue? Has the fight for equality been reignited, as supporters insist? These are questions I posed to James Lane, an Indiana University Northwest professor and region historian who vividly remembers that historic day. “I think it’s very relevant,” Lane told me on my latest Casual Fridays radio show. “In fact, the entire year, 1963, was crucial to the movement. The speech was sort of the climax of the phase where African-Americans were trying to sit down at lunch counters and on the front of the bus.” “In other words, break down the barriers of segregation in public places,” said Lane, who at the time was a college student at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. Many of the protesters who were arrested or beaten for sit-ins and public activism — blacks and whites alike — were Lane’s age, only fueling his impressionable efforts to be a part of the movement. A part of history, which transcends historian aspirations. “The civil rights movement was very inspiring to me, as was King, who was thrust to the forefront of the movement for being such a great orator,” Lane told my listeners. On that day, during the controversial rally for “jobs and freedom,” Lane remembers that part of its goal was to dispel the delusional stereotype from white America that the south teemed with “happy black people.” King’s speech was aimed more toward white Americans than black Americans, Lane noted. “We would benefit from an open integrated society, not just black people,” Lane said. What is often lost about King, or purposely hidden through the white-washing of our country’s history, is just how controversial a figurehead he was during the movement. Stirring speeches. Countless protests. Multiple arrests. Wrongful imprisonments. Death threats. Yes, he was a man of words, but he gave those words life through his actions. “We remember him as this lovable man when, in fact, he was a fighter, a freedom fighter,” said Lane, who said he tried to work for the NAACP in Philadelphia during his summer break of 1961. Lane’s so-called “bravery” of supporting civil rights at the time was not a dangerous or life-threatening act, he noted, compared to blacks who literally put their lives on the line each day. He simply debated with family, friends and fellow students. Lane remembers wondering after King’s funeral in 1968 if the reverend’s famous dream could continue without him. King already knew the answer and he repeatedly preached it from a pulpit, a jail cell or the packed mall grounds in Washington. “I may not get there with you,” King told followers, hinting at his own fate. And he didn’t. But his timely and timeless words still echo true five decades later: “A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus.” As King’s son, Martin Luther King III, told a massive crowd at Saturday’s rally at the mall in D.C., “This is not the time for nostalgic commemoration. This is not the time for self-congratulatory celebration. The fight must continue.” At 1 p.m. today, Lane will offer introductory remarks for “The Dream Continues,” an event and exhibit remembering King’s speech. It will take place at the Marshall J. Gardner Center for the Arts, 540 S. Lake St. in Miller. The event, free and open to the public, features dozens of photographic prints of King murals by award-winning documentary photographer Camilo Jose Vergara, a Chile-born Notre Dame graduate who’s been to this region numerous times to take photos of inner-city life, his artistic forte. “He came to Gary every three or four years to photograph what he called the city ruins,” Lane said. A 30-minute episode of the poignant documentary, “Eyes on the Prize,” also will be screened during the event. Today, at the Lincoln Memorial in D.C., President Obama is scheduled to speak, and the commenoration will include a nationwide ringing of bells at 2 p.m. Does it help race relations to remind ourselves of King’s speech, his martyred efforts and his vision of America by ringing our collective bells, literally and figuratively? Do real-life incidents such as the Trayvon Martin killing or fictionalized accounts in the new film, “Lee Daniels’ The Butler,” serve a purpose to keep the dream alive? I’m not so sure. How close we are to realizing King’s dream depends on who you ask. A new Pew poll shows a nation still divided, not too surprising. Black Americans are nearly twice as likely as white ones (79 percent versus 44 percent) to say we have a long way to go before reaching equality. We should remember that King wasn’t crusading only for civil rights of black Americans, but for all Americans. This holds true today for other groups in our country who are struggling for equality, including the gay community and immigrants. The new poll shows whites are growing more pessimistic, though, with only 35 percent saying things have gotten better in the past five years, down from 49 percent in 2009. “The two Americas that are drifting further apart — poverty and inequality — have scarred King’s dream for many African-Americans,” Lane said. “We’re getting closer to that reality and there’s a lot to celebrate, but we can’t get too complacent about how far we have to go.” As King told followers before his assassination, “The time is always right to do the right thing.” Today’s an ideal time to remind ourselves of such a simple statement by such a complex statesman.
Posted on: Wed, 28 Aug 2013 15:06:52 +0000
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