This discussion is devoted to the analysis of the speech I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King. Dr. King was a renowned African American Baptist preacher, doctor of theology, and one of the brightest orators in history. He was the leader of the Black Civil Rights Movement in the United States and the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate in history. His speech I Have a Dream, which was heard by about 300 thousand Americans during the march to Washington on August 28, 1963, became widely known (Cooke 34). In the speech, King glorifies racial reconciliation in contemporary society, redefines the essence of the American democratic dream, and rekindles its spiritual fire. The present essay argues that Dr. Kings speech is still relevant nowadays because it addresses the topical issues of racial inequality and violence.
King began his speech by mentioning the American dilemma and pointing to the historical moment when US President Abraham Lincoln abolished slavery a hundred years ago. King’s speech is indeed considered the highest “point” of the civil rights movement in the United States. The civil rights movement eventually moved to the practical stage of implementation under the auspices of the so-called progressive policy of the Liberals (Sokol 204). The goal of this policy was to solve the racial problem; however, African Americans still have not achieved the dream of complete freedom and equality.
Still, one might argue that Kings prominent speech has already become outdated by the 21st century because, on the legal level, all American citizens are granted equal rights, duties, and responsibilities. The Constitution of the US guarantees this equality, and violation of the equality of rights prescribed by the Constitution is punished. What is more, according to Horowitz et al., only 4 out of 10 American citizens believe that this problem still exists. From this, it follows that Martin Luther Kings speech is inapplicable to modern times.
Nonetheless, despite the attempts to deny racial inequality in American society, real-life experience shows that in recent years, the issue of racial inequality has remained immensely topical. Undoubtedly, almost every stranger believes that it is wrong to judge people depending on their skin color, nationality, gender, or age. Unfortunately, the statistics prove the opposite. More precisely, the survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2019 reveals that around 80 percent of black adults claim that the US has almost no progress in terms of racial equality (Horowitz et al.). What is more, only 50 percent of white respondents share the opinion expressed by the African Americans (Horowitz et al.).
This data should make the decision-makers think about what they are doing wrong in fighting inequality and violence directed at black American citizens. Another logical inference from this data is that the policies introduced to fix this burning problem are superficial and merely perfunctory.
Another reason why the speech I Have a Dream is relevant today is that it targets the problem of structural racism that exists even though every person knows that racism is a bad thing and should be eradicated. A person per se might not be racist, he or she might be polite to all people and treat everyone equally regardless of their race. However, this structural racism prevents people from being equal. Structural racism fosters “racial discrimination through mutually reinforcing systems of housing, education, employment, earnings, benefits, credit, media, health care, and criminal justice” (Bailey 1453). In other words, every American citizen individually might be non-racist, but the social functions so that discrimination based on race is unavoidable.
What is more, some anti-racist actions of the government and some companies even exacerbate the present situation. Martin Luther King wants everyone to be treated equally regardless of race because race is only about appearance, not knowledge, skills, or character. Still, the problem is that many universities in the US implement diversity policies. Without a doubt, it is excellent that educational facilities fight racism and try to attract various students.
Nevertheless, the problem is that such approaches fail to eradicate structural racism and even could exacerbate it (Reese). This argument is based on the fact that universities agree that non-white students need help and will not cope with entering a university by themselves by applying diversity policies. Besides, these policies do not change the difference in the quality of education retrieved in middle and high school. It is common knowledge that the quality of education in most public schools for needy children is much lower than in private schools. That is why diversity policies of universities will bring no significant improvements to the topical problem of racism.
One more reason for the relevance of this speech is that it highlights that in the 1960-s black people suffered the same troubles as they do now. More precisely, King highlights that “the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality” (para. 13). Unfortunately, statistics provide horrible evidence that “Black men are 2.5 times more likely than white men to be killed by police during their lifetime” (Peeples para. 4). At the same time, one might say that police kill criminals only when their actions threaten the life of a policeman. Additionally, every death during such operations to detain criminals is thoroughly investigated. Consequently, police officers are responsible for everything they do, and if the death of a criminal is unreasonable, they get sentenced to imprisonment.
Undoubtedly, police officers do not use their authority to kill black people for no reason. Nevertheless, the problem is that white policemen might unconsciously treat a black criminal as more aggressive because society taught them that black people are potentially more dangerous. The data provided by the US Department of Justice reveals that in 2019, 5,600 black people and 5,070 white people were arrested for either murder or involuntary manslaughter. At the same time, the number of white people who committed such crimes as aggravated and simple assaults,
theft, arson, counterfeiting, fraud, and embezzlement is two times higher than the number of black people (US Department of Justice). From this perspective, the argument above that high rates of black people killed by police could be justified by their greater propensity for crime is groundless.
Finally, the relevance and significance of the discussed speech lie within its role as a symbol. It shows that considerable changes in a country are possible if there is a uniting force that has a visible expression. King demonstrated how an acute issue can be heard and taken into account – without appealing to ferocity and cruelty (Hassan). In the modern world, when people tend to use all the available means to achieve their aims -especially when it comes to politics – King’s approach and speech still serve as a symbol of how to do it right.
To conclude, although this historical event has sunk into oblivion, the idea itself is modern and relevant to this day: it is impossible to win by responding with violence to violence. Martin Luther King’s insistence on unity and nonviolent action in response to oppression and brutality are worthy of deep respect and long memory. Martin Luther King’s speeches have become key moments in American history in the struggle for racial justice and marked the beginning of a new era of racial tolerance. And his memorable speech I Have a Dream is a real rhetorical masterpiece by studying one can learn a lot.
Works Cited
Bailey, Zinzi D., et al. “Structural Racism and Health Inequities in the USA: Evidence and Interventions.” The Lancet, vol. 389, no. 10077, 2017, pp. 1453-1463. Web.
Cooke, Tim. Martin Luther King Jr. Gareth Stevens Publishing, 2017.
Hassan, Adeel. “Dr. King’s ‘Dream’ Speech: His Son Reflects on How Far We Have Come.” The New York Times. 2019. Web.
Horowitz, Juliana Menasce, et al. “Race in America 2019”. Pew Research Center. 2019. Web.
King, Martin Luther. “I Have a Dream.” American Rhetoric. 1963. Web.
Peeples, Lynne. “What the Data Say About Police Brutality and Racial Bias — And Which Reforms Might Work”. Nature. 2020. Web.
Reese, Benjamin D. Diversity and Inclusion Are Not Enough. Inside Higher Ed. 2020. Web.
Sokol, Jason. The Heavens Might Crack: The Death and Legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. Basic Books, 2018.
US Department of Justice. “Estimated Number of Arrests By Offense And Race, 2019.
Age: All ages”. 2019. Web.