“...The question is not, ‘If I stop to help this man in need, what will happen to me?’ The question is, ‘If I do not stop to help the sanitation workers, what will happen to them?’ That’s the question.
Let us rise up tonight with a greater readiness. Let us stand with a greater determination. And let us move on in these powerful days, these days of challenge to make America what it ought to be. We have an opportunity to make America a better nation. And I want to thank God once more for allowing me to be here with you.
...I left Atlanta this morning, and as we got started on the plane, there were six of us, the pilot said over the public address system. ‘We are sorry for the delay, but we have Dr. Martin Luther King on the plane. And to be sure that all of the bags were checked, and to be sure that nothing would be wrong on the plane, we had to check out everything carefully. And we’ve had the plane protected and guarded all night.
And then I got into Memphis. And some began to say the threats, or talk about the threats that were out. What would happen to me from some of our sick white brothers?
Well, I don’t know what will happen now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn’t matter with me now, because I’ve been to the mountaintop and I don’t mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will, and He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over and I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight, that we as a people will get to the Promised Land. And I’m happy tonight; I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord."
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
April 3, 1968
My, how I love that man. May he continue to rest in peace, as the peace he fought for continues, with God's help, to draw closer within our reach.
This entry was posted on Monday, January 16, 2006 at 1/16/2006 02:04:00 PM.
Byblah blah bah
Bywhere can i view the speech? that link only provides audio.
ByI'd like to know where to watch it too.
ByOver here i put up a quote from Heschel about MLK, btw.
You can view the speech at http://www.mecca.org/~crights/dream.html.
ByI also invite you to check out my blog Books and Beliefs and read my post about Dr. King and the mitzvah of giving blood.
We have a long road ahead of us to achieve the dream Dr. King talked about, and while we've already come a long way, let's take the next step today.
Very nice and important post. Now if we could just get the yeshivas to observe the day...
ByHi Ren Reb,
ByI posted a piece about Dr. King that includes a link to an audio track of The I Have a Dream speech. If you don't mind I am going to provide that link here. Dr.King's work may not be done, but it hasn't been forgotten either.
Wow- that is so beautiful and he, indeed, was a great man. I hope we never forget him or his message...
Bydbs -- my son had half a day in yeshiva today.
Bywe did puja and I remembered him during the guru (wisdom principle) portion).
Byhis speeches, all of them, make me cry like a little girl.
let us all work for peace and justice. but first, I must go to bed.
my sociology teacher thinks that based on what dr king wrote he probably would have been appauled at the idea of taking off school because of his birthday, and that he probably would have prefered manditory school attendance for every one young and old in classes appropriate for them (hence a day off of work where all the workers go to college classes for a day.)
Byall in all i think that dr king did some really good things for america
My son's school (a Jewish day school) had a normal school day, except all of the teachers planned lessons for their classes to teach about Dr. King and the goals he worked toward.
ByMy son (who just turned 5) says that in his pre-K class, they read a story about Dr. King's life and talked about his values.
My seven year old (2nd grade) said in computer class they went to a website about Dr. King and had to find out information about him (birthday, birthplace, father's occupation, mother's occupation, hobbies, goals in life) and compare it to themselves. This was in addition to the birthday party they had for him, and a coloring book type project they'd been doing all week.
ByAnd yes, it's a Jewish Day School. They were planning to give the day off *while still learning about him) but then they gave it back because of a snow day.
Today I taught my kids(preschool) about the importance of friendship. I said that before MLK not everyone got along and they didn't do good sharing with eachother. I also said that eventhough Sam has brown hair and Monique has blonde hair they can still be friends, eventhough they are a little different. I then made them go around in a circle saying something nice to the person next to them. As a project we created MLK's circle of friendship. We had a big picture of him and put our handprints all around his face using multicultural paint colors.
ByI think Jewish schools (well, all schools) should have school. They should have an assembly about Dr. MLK. They should have special programs and assignments about civil rights. They should understand the important advances that came about because of him. He was (IMO) the closest thing to a prophet we'll see in our lifetimes (in the Heschelian sense of prophets, not in forecasting the future). He is our American moral hero.
ByThat kids have off to laze around and watch TV is a shonda.
Lovely post Rebbetzin!
ByBut what's up with some of these comments? Telling kids that not everyone got along years ago? Um, no that's the case today. In the days of MLK, Black people were treated like dogs in many parts of this country, and as half humans in the rest. I mean, that's like saying that Hitler "expelled" the Jews. No he exterminated them. Just like the pictures of the Jews in concentration camps are common knowledge, so should the images of the lynchings and black elementary children being spit on by White adults be common knowledge. It is very, very dangerous to sugar-coat history. Especially when it is the history of the very country you live in. It stands as testament that evil is real and we cannot lay back on our laurels and say that all is right with the world.
There are times that I am quite happy having left the United States - but I still miss Thanksgiving. Dr. King is another bit of Americana that the world is so sadly unaware of. I've been out out biking through Northen Thailand this past week and on a whim took a few mins to glance at your recent posts. Thank you so much for reminding me that Monday was MLK day and for the wonderful choice of memorial.
ByIt has always bothered me to see how some Orthodox Jews and especially many yeshivish ones are very racist. Being raised in Atlanta, I always drew inspiration from King and his teachings. Great post on your part and I'm glad to see that there are some frum Jews who admire King like I do.
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