By Alisha Ahmed
This past Monday we celebrated the life of civil rights activist, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King was a social activist who fought for equality and human rights, things we sometimes take for granted today. Although he was assassinated, we have not forgotten him and what he has done for us.
King led the Civil Rights Movement, organizing many peaceful protests in the hope of gaining equality. He is well-known for his famous speech, “I Have a Dream.” This passionate speech was about a dream where the United States was free of segregation and racism.
If we examine America today, is King’s dream accomplished? Or is it still a place of hate and segregation? Here we are fifty-three years after King’s death, and many are still fighting for basic human rights.
This past summer the death of George Floyd occurred at the hands of racist police, and the violence did not stop there. Day after day, hundreds of people have died from police brutality. What was the crime? Their race. When will it stop? Will we ever realize to focus beyond the color of a person’s skin?
Society might say that racism does not exist and is history, but if racism is gone how do you explain the many people of color who are constant victims of police brutality? The Black Lives Matter organization organized peaceful protests in search for equality. Instead, they received tear gas and bullets thrown at them.
As King said, “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed.” Hopefully King’s dream will become a reality, and one day we will live in a place of freedom and justice.