Martin Luther King’s speech “I Have a Dream” delivered on the 28th of August 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C. was all about values and equality. Jr. King talked about the American Dream and how every person, despite the color of their skin, are entitled to taste the American Dream and have a place in a society where blacks and whites are not far apart. He certainly made a great impact to the world with his speech, given that, today, he is the one and only individual, of all the numerous great men in the American History, that is given his name to a national celebration. It is commonly accepted that people should be better taught by example. However, despite the fact that his speech was one of the most inspiring in the American history, a true leader needs to have specific qualities and values, like integrity and fairness that Martin Luther King did not have at their fullest. In fact, there were cases where Martin Luther King appears to not be following the rules in some parts of his life, which makes him a rather inappropriate speaker and leader.
A recent post in The Telegraph, journalist, columnist and author Damian Thompson, reveals hidden sides of Martin Luther King’s life that opposes to the “practice what you speak”. To begin with, King talks about freedom and the Constitution of the United States that had failed in the given “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."”(King). He urges an entire nation to abide by the rules, when he had plagiarized his own dissertation for a doctoral degree in Philosophy from Boston University (Thompson). Taken from the archives of The New York Times, an article written on October 11, 1991 fully backs up the claim, mentioning that Boston University had appointed a committee of scholars to evaluate Martin Luther King’s dissertation “A Comparison of the Conceptions of God in the Thinking of Paul Tillich and Henry Nelson Wieman" that was submitted 36 years ago, and concluded that it had, indeed, plagiarized passages (The New York Times). Interestingly enough, Boston University never took away Luther King’s doctorate, which would be done in any other case for sure, given the strict rules that fall under academic paper submissions and plagiarism (Thompson). King died five years after he made the “I have a dream” speech, after having based his life and reputation on cheating and going against the rules of academia, which is contradictory to what he preached for. Finally, King (1963) started his speech with “Five score years ago”, echoing Lincoln’s famous “Four score and seven years ago”, from the Gettysburg Address (Abraham Lincoln Online). The same happens to the ending part of his speech that bears resemblances with Archibald Carey, Jr.'s address to the Republican National Convention, in 1952 (Hansen). Many phrases Carey has used in his speech, were later adopted by King and added in his “I have a dream” that make most of his writing a plagiarized piece. For example, the references “Let freedom ring” as read identical in Carey’s and King’s speeches, with the difference that King’s speech followed that of Carey’s. The aforementioned points in King’s speech could as well be differentiated, and King could come up with an original. Or is it, perhaps, King’s way of doing things? Meaning, plagiarize parts even after his graduation? Skepticism arises, in regards the true qualities of a leader.
The American dream also puts family on top of all and forwards family members to respect and cherish this holly institution. If King wanted part of the American Dream, he should be a follower. The post in The Telegraph continues by claiming King was a womanizer that had various extramarital liaisons (Thompson). As a matter of fact, according to Civil rights activist and King’s right hand, Ralph Abernathy, the very last night King was murdered, while standing on the balcony of Lorraine Motel in Memphis by Earl Ray (Brown), he was having extramarital intimate affairs with two women and had fought with a third one, over her jealousy for him (Thompson).
Other than that, Martin Luther King has fought for the rights of African Americans in the United States and how they deserved to be fairly and equally treated. Today, about 50 years after King’s speech, the world celebrates a great victory. But, how big this victory is? Truth is that black people are no longer slaves of the whites, there are no segregated restaurants to separate the African Americans from the rest of the world and can indeed “gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities” (King). However, Luther King said in his speech: “We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality” (King). No one will ever question the valuable work King has done while he was alive towards black/white equality; however, today’s evidence and data signify that things might have changed on the outside –African Americans have entered all fields that used to be “white-dominant”, like the workplace, dining facilities and good housing and accommodation, and are now living lives far better than 50 years ago. But, how much have they managed to become socially accepted? Police brutality still stands towards the African Americans, based on research literature and recent studies. It is commonly known that the police is trained to embrace brutality to help control minority communities, like the African Americans (Watson). However, the 1973 Howard Johnson’s sniper shootings by Mark Essex, is believed to be the outcome of extreme measures taken by the police (Watson). Racial discrimination still exists and justifies the quote “appearances are [sometimes] deceptive”. The public’s representative, the governor of Louisiana, together with the police chief referred to the shooting as “a black nationalist conspiracy to kill white police.” (Watson). If the authorities still talk about black and white police and black and white people, then we certainly have a long way to go, until one can strongly claim that Martin Luther King’s “Dream” has indeed been fulfilled. It seems that societies never managed to fully embrace African Americans as an integral part of their community, and, for some reason, the African Americans have been connected with crime and criminal activities that personify them throughout the years, as of now.
Martin Luther King had what people call “wishful thinking”. He dreamt of America as the promise land of the African Americans and spoke passionately about his race claiming what is rightfully theirs: their freedom and chance for a happy life. Yet, “I have a dream” is all about wishful thinking, and little, or better say none, solution(s) to the prevailing sociopolitical and economic problems of his time. Yes, his speech exhibits “an ‘integrative’ rhetorical style that mirrors and maintains King’s call for a racially integrated America” (Vail), but what action should be best taken for the sake of equality? King does not mention of go any further than that; and that required action, to the minds of those listening and longing for a better future for them and their children, might be of the extremes. King, as a leader he was presented, speaking and acting, should have advised his people and followers on proper measures to claim their rights. Other than that, King applied his great rhetorical skills and preaching talent to make an impact and awaken people, which he masterly achieved, even without mentioning anything out of wishes and dreams.
That being said, Martin Luther King’s speech itself was truly motivating. He talked about dignity and using the soul’s force to let lead the African American’s fight for justice and equal rights. He knows that the power of the many is greater that the power of one and for that reason he forwards his followers to be united and look ahead “We cannot walk alone. And as we walk we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back”. The world can evolve only if it escapes discriminating concepts that divide societies and communities into two groups of people, and King was smart enough to see that. He used great wording and phrases that speak to the hearts of people, allowing them to dream for something better. And, most of all, he gave the African Americans the will to want to change for the sake of their children, because they were entitled to life and happiness. Religion is known to unite people, so King used the Bible a lot in his speech, probably as a means to bring people together and make them see they all have a common goal. And judging from the outcome, he succeeded it. The day after his speech, the New York Times wrote, through the hand of James Reston, that King touched all the themes of the day in a unique way never seen before (University of Stanford).
All in all, Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech was inspirational and motivating and appealed to the people hearing it at that time, and reading it later on, until nowadays. King used eloquence and rhetorical skills that made his speech reach people deep inside. Despite the fact that there are questions as to whether he can be considered a good leader, judging from what is known about his personal life, his speech alone was speaking of human rights and dignity, which could never be considered wrongs. Maybe King’s dream has not yet been fulfilled and there may still be race discriminations dividing nations; however, he certainly has awaken people and tried to pass on to them that we must stick together and together we should all walk for a better life and future. Because we all have the right to happiness in life. However, it would be much more appealing if he could indeed teach by his example and his personal life was aligned with what he preached. Maybe, then, the people would know what the paste of a true leader is really all about.
Works Cited:
Abraham Lincoln Online (n.d). “Speeches and Writings: The Gettysburg Address”. Taken from: Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, edited by Roy P. Basler. Web. Nov. 9, 2013 <http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm>
Brown, Mitchell (n.d). “Martin Luther King, Jr.: A Biographical Sketch”. LSU Libraries. Louisiana State University. Web. Nov. 9, 2013 <http://www.lib.lsu.edu/hum/mlk/srs218.html>
Hansen, D, D. (2003), The Dream. Print. Harper Collins Publishers. p. 108
King, Martin Luther (1963). “I Have a Dream”. U.S National Archives. Web. Nov. 9, 2013 < http://www.archives.gov/press/exhibits/dream-speech.pdf>
Thompson, Damian (2013). “If the tabloids had been around in his day, 'Dr' Martin Luther King would be in big trouble”. The Telegraph. Web. Nov. 9, 2013 < http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/damianthompson/100232872/if-the-tabloids-had-been-around-in-his-day-dr-martin-luther-king-would-be-in-big-trouble/
The New York Times (1991). “Archives: Boston U. Panel Finds Plagiarism by Dr. King”. Web. Nov. 9, 2013 < http://www.nytimes.com/1991/10/11/us/boston-u-panel-finds-plagiarism-by-dr-king.html>
Vail, Mark. "The 'Integrative' Rhetoric of Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have a Dream' Speech." Rhetoric and Public Affairs, 9.1 (2006): 51-78.
Watson, Dwight (2011). “Black Rage in New Orleans: Police Brutality and African American Activism from World War II to Hurricane Katrina (review)”. Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 115, Number 1, July 2011. pp. 100-101 | 10.1353/swh.2011.0069
