Honoring his dream on MLK Jr. Day
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MLK Jr. Day 2023 Commentary
January 16, 2023
Honoring his dream on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
During his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.”1
Engraved in the marble outside the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., are the words, “I HAVE A DREAM,” which marks the spot where King delivered that speech on August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.2
King, the scholar, activist and orator, played a vital role in the creation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and believed that freedom could ring for all peoples in this nation – Black, white, Jewish, protestant, Catholic and “all God’s Children.”1
When King was assassinated in 1968, his work was unfinished. And not far from where he gave his famous speech stands the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, a prominent, unfinished figure that represents that fact. The memorial consists of three granite pieces. Visitors to the memorial will first walk through the two granite pieces that make up the “Mountain of Despair” and to the towering “Stone of Hope”, which is the unfinished granite statue of King. These come from the words, “With this faith, we will be able to hew out of a mountain of despair, a stone of hope,” in his “I Have a Dream” speech.4
We celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which was made a national holiday in 1983, to honor the legacy he left.5
King said, “True peace is not merely the absence of tension: it is the presence of justice.”4
Today, let us explore how we are playing a role in bringing Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream to life. How are we making the world a better and more equitable place for everybody?
Honoring MLK Jr. and his legacy,
Leif M. Hagen, CLU, ChFC
LPL Financial Advisor
Achievement Financial
Dream. Plan. Achieve.
Sources:
1 https://www.npr.org/2010/01/18/122701268/i-have-a-dream-speech-in-its-entirety
2 https://www.nps.gov/places/000/lincoln-memorial-i-have-a-dream-marker.htm
3 https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/civil-rights-act-1964
4 https://nationalmall.org/explore?gclid=CjwKCAiA7IGcBhA8EiwAFfUDsb3wgdNUnnjZ58U_88WI3q_urm57n5OsdZKyfta7LDRqux0PSlmu_RoCsIMQAvD_BwE
5 https://www.britannica.com/topic/Martin-Luther-King-Jr-Day
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This material was prepared by Carson Coaching. Carson Coaching is not affiliated with the named broker/dealer or firm
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