Martin Luther King, Jr. "I Have a Dream," 1963

This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality.

One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination.

And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice.

The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed 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

We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a
smaller ghetto to a larger one.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?"

One hundred
years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land.

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations.

Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring,
when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last!

This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice.

We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now.

We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence.

But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt.

We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence.

And some of you have come from areas where your quest -- quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned.

With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood.

One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination.

The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

American Rhetoric.

The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed 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.

Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."

This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Instead of honoring this sacred obligation,
America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."

This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice.

We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now.

And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities.

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline.

But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds.

No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream."