He had a Dream, Do I?

When prompted to think about Martin Luther King Jr.'s most famous speech, which is "I Have a Dream", all I think about is change. This was definitely an example of "language that inspired change". His speech is all about change and leaving the past and starting a new future. The African American race was treated so poorly that they all saw no bright future ahead of them and had no hope for change. That all changed when Martin Luther King Jr. gave his speech. He gave them a sense of freedom. They all felt a need for change but this speech gave the means for change. He found a way to reach his audience where every single person of every race heard it.


Martin Luther King Jr. gave his speech on the Lincoln Memorial. This memorial represented freedom and unity. This was honored through Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech, where his whole speech was about unity between races and the freedom of the African Americans. I do not think that he could have picked a better place to deliver his speech. I think that this location served its purpose very well and gave a deeper meaning to his speech and spoke to his audience.

In his speech he prompted many changes towards civil rights and the way people viewed them. Martin Luther King Jr. said in his speech, " is not an end, but a beginning", prompting that this is not the end to anything but that we are just starting something new. The start of something new is change. Martin Luther King Jr. also stated, " The Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny." This proves that he was talking to both Whites and African Americans. Both needed to have a change of heart, which he was planting the seed for. The fact that he mentioned that white people were there meant that change had already started and he was reaching their hearts. In his speech he said "Knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed." This helped everyone believe that change not only could happen but also would happen. I think that everybody knew change could happen but did not know that it would happen. This speech helped everybody have hope that it actually would happen. When hope is felt, change is possible. With no hope felt nobody is going to have the means for change.

I believe that if I were there while Martin Luther King Jr. was delivering his speech, "I have a dream" I would have been moved. His speech was well written and well communicated. If I were a White person in that time I would have been touched and set up for change. His speech reached so many people and still affects us today. Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech is still felt today as we go through out our lives. The fact that we still feel his speech now, many years later, means that it did in fact inspire change. I start to think about myself and what would I stand up for and be willing to speak on. If given the opportunity would I be able to inspire change or would I even be heard?