“This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy; now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice; now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood” (King 35-40). On August 28, 1963, thousands of U.S. citizens came to witness Martin Luther King Jr.’s renowned I Have a Dream speech. Martin Luther King Jr. was an influential activist who lead Americans through peaceful, yet effective, protesting. Protesting for basic rights does not only occur in the United States, but all over the world. By exploring Cairo: My City, …show more content…
Thousands of American citizens gathered to witness Martin Luther King Jr.’s influential I Have a Dream speech. King gave his speech to thousands of protesters, in order to persuade people of America to stop segregation and give equal rights to everyone, regardless of skin color. U.S. citizens needed to demand their rights through protesting to achieve equality. An example of this in his speech is, “And so we’ve come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice” (King 48-49). This shows that people were marching because they were unhappy with the marginalization occurring in their country. They came to Washington DC to “cash their check” or finally demand equal rights through protesting. Another example from Martin Luther King’s speech is, “The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges” (King 49). King believed that the people in America still needed to fight for their freedoms and that they couldn’t stop protesting until they achieved their goal. He understood that they would not just be given equality and integration of the races in America, and that discrimination would end. Protesting for equality is an endless battle that is still present and being fought for