With the elections finally ending and Martin Luther King Jr. Day quickly approaching, we are challenged to remember the dreams Martin Luther King Jr. once had. At this moment in history, we can see the steps that we have taken as a nation in progressing towards Dr. King’s dream.
For the first time, we have elected an African-American as the head of the highest political office in our country. By achieving this, we have not only shown progress toward racial equality, but we have also shown that race is not a limitation any longer. We still have work ahead of us, as we continually face systemic discrimination. However, the present is a glimpse of hope for the future.This year’s MLK Day is one of great significance to us, because of its historical implications. This year, a dream is being fulfilled. We are, as a people, moving out of an abyss of constant barriers, and moving into a new era, alight with possibilities and opportunities. We now recognize that we have the chance to be an even more powerful and effective body if we capitalize on strengths found in us as individuals, defined by our character, rather than our race.
Dr. King said in his “I Have a Dream” speech that, “Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.” We have reached a time when this has become an attainable goal. We have not completely been put on the solid rock of brotherhood just yet. The road ahead of us still holds a journey to be traveled. We must take this journey together, regardless of race, class, religion, sexual orientation, or anything else that causes divisions between us. We must take this journey as brothers and sisters.
Brett Bridges is a sophomore ASL major from Crete, Ill. and John Tamirat is a junior buisness major from St. Paul, Minn.
