Speeches
Remarks to FBI - For Such a Time as This by Michael Nila
Martin Luther King, Jr. "I Have a Dream"
Martin Luther King, Jr. "I Have a Dream" in Spanish
Remarks To FBI
10th Oct 2002
Orlando Florida
By: Michael Nila (Franklin Covey)
For Such A Time as This
What does one say to the distinguished members and their spouses of the most prestigious Law Enforcement Agency in the world at a time when that agency is under fire, suspicion and reorganization? A time for the FBI that is being described as the most challenging in its history, when each new day brings greater uncertainty and a future that bears little resemblance to the past. My remarks will be simple and not designed to enlighten as much as to remind us of things we already know are true but are so easily forgotten and lost in the chaos of turbulent times. My goal is to touch both your head and your heart, as I know that impact can only come when the heart is moved and our intellect expanded. Let me illustrate this with a funny story …Hey buddy …
Think of the times we are in today, not just with the FBI but also with Law enforcement and our nation as a whole. The story of Esther in the bible is one of courage and purpose – two ideals for us to pursue in challenging times. Esther was the fairest of Jewish maidens and the cousin of Mordecai who raised her as his own daughter. When the King became disillusioned with his queen he had his subjects scour the country for beautiful young women and bring them to his palace.
Esther was one of these women, upon her selection Mordecai reminded her not to let them know she was Jewish since the Jews were not in favor and so she kept her secret. The king eventually selected Esther as his queen and he held her in very high esteem. As time passed and the Jews fell in even more disfavor, partly because Mordecai refused to pay homage to the king and his subjects, the king issued an edict that all Jews including Mordecai would be killed. Upon hearing the edict Mordecai sent a message to Esther telling her she must intervene with the king and get him to change his order. Esther responded by saying she wanted to but could not due to the knowledge that the King’s law called for the killing of anyone who came to him with a request without being summoned to do so – she was afraid she would die as a result of the request. Mordecai responded to this fear by telling Esther that the fate of her race depended on her courage and said “for such a time as this” you have been called to the kingdom to serve. This is your time, your unique purpose when you can do something significant for your people and history. For such a time as this! Esther, understanding the message responded that she would intervene and proclaimed, “If I perish, I perish!” And of course, she intervened, and the Jews were spared, ultimately because of Esther’s influence they would be held in great favor and would gain power in the kingdom.
So what do we learn from this – For such a time as this -- all of you have been called to serve our nation.
This special time that we are in, the discomfort of uncertainty, should also bring with it an energy and excitement for the opportunity to create something better than what we left behind. Stephen Covey says that there are three constants in the times we live: change, principles and choice. Let me discuss these three for a moment.
Change: We live in dynamic times of constant change! From technology, to our nation’s demographics, shifting patterns of crime and investigative techniques, a roller-coaster economy, changing values and fads, a society that moves frequently and a generation of workers that will change careers and jobs many times – even in the FBI with reorganizations and a shifting mission. There are few constants in our world today and one of those is continuous change. Are you ready for change, tolerant of change, do you embrace change with the thought “bring it on” and a commitment to being a valuable contributor to the new?
The second constant is Principles: Principles are natural laws that endure over time and are universal, they are ever present and unchanging. When we understand the principles at play we are empowered to fly planes defying gravity, we can cure disease, respond to nature’s uncertainty, we can even promote and ensure democracy which is based on the enduring principles of freedom, fundamental fairness, equity and opportunity. But, just as honoring principles enables us to be just, productive, safe and enjoy a high quality of life – when we reject and dishonor principles we face the consequences which are beyond our ability to control.
What are the foundational principles for the FBI? Fidelity, Bravery, Integrity – when we honor them and stay true to the promise we made – the oath -- we can predict with some certainty the results. But when we dishonor them – can we not also predict with certainty the results? Yes we can, and they are not what the framers of the constitution and the nation had in mind.
Let me share my perspective of what Fidelity, Bravery and Integrity mean to me.
Fidelity: being true to a promise or the oath all law enforcement officers take. Let’s use the example of a marriage. What is the visible symbol of the promise or vows of marriage? A ring! But when we wear the ring so many of us think the ring I wear belongs to me, when in actuality it belongs to the person I made the promise of marriage to – my spouse. The ring is not mine -- it acts to boldly remind me of my promise – Fidelity!
In Policing we have many symbols of our promise, it may be a gun, handcuffs, a uniform, or a raid jacket with FBI emblazoned on the front and back. The most bold and elegant symbol is our badge – be it a shield or a star, be it big or small – it is the symbol you keep with you at all times. When we show it, or pin it to our chest, it is a public affirmation of our promise, of the oath we took. The badge reminds and demands fidelity to the promise of justice just as a wedding ring reminds and demands fidelity to a spouse.
The ring belongs to the spouse not the wearer and the badge belongs to the people and not to the man or women who holds it in their possession. A spouse can take the ring back when disappointed, and the people of America have the right to take back our badge when we disappoint – for it ultimately belongs to them. So what is fidelity – being true to the promise! Being true to our oath!
Bravery: to me bravery is courage. But when I think back to when I was a young cop working the street, bravery was as important to me then as it is now. But somewhere in my career the meaning of bravery changed for me. It went from being about physical danger, a willingness to put myself in harms way that was often illogical, to a willingness to stand up for what I knew was right and true -- it ceased to be about confronting physical fears. Today it’s about doing the right thing – always – that may be the ultimate act of bravery and heroism. A Fire Commissioner of NY many years ago was asked about the courage his firefighters displayed in fighting a particularly dangerous fire.
He responded that the most heroic act any firefighter ever makes is the day they raise their hand, take an oath and join the firefighting service. That was the defining moment of courage and everything that came after that courageous commitment was simply – in the line of duty! His thoughts are no less true of the law enforcement community.
Bravery is not just taking the punch or the bullet, being first through the door, or running in when all else are running out – it is the bold act of doing what is right despite the consequences. It is the bold act of embracing humanity and treating those less fortunate than ourselves with the god given dignity and respect they deserve. It is the bold act of living our life with a balance that honors not just our work but our relationships and all our commitments as well.
Integrity: is simply being honest and true to our values, principles and beliefs. Easily said but not easily achieved. One of the most powerful forces in law enforcement is peer pressure that far too often can cause us to act against our beliefs and subsequently to violate our own integrity.
The FBI principles of fidelity, bravery, integrity, are constants that will not change despite this ever-changing time we live in. While everyone and everything around you is in turmoil, the constants are your principles – honor them and they will guide you to the right place. Dishonor them, forget to let them guide your thoughts and actions – and you face consequences that are beyond your ability to control!
The third constant Stephen Covey talks about is Choice – the power we all have that no one can take away. We are at choice as to how we respond to the first two constants: change and principles. We call choice – the last of human freedoms -- the freedom to choose our response to anything life lays in our path. As long as we have choice, we cannot be a victim.
When we choose our actions based on our values and principles rather than fear and emotion – we exercise control of the events and direction of our life.
Let me speak for a moment about the profession you have chosen for you and for your family -- this profession of Policing. Plato called you the “Guardians,” the protectors of democracy, justice and freedom. Joseph Wambaugh called you the “New Centurians,” President Bush and a grateful nation calls you “America’s first line of defense.” Policing is the most noble of professions.
Why is it so noble? Because what you do every moment of every day touches lives. World class policing saves lives, ensures democracy and promotes justice.
We are the greatest country in the world because of democracy and freedom. Our nation has thrived and survived despite being described as an “experiment” that was predicted to fail. Why? We survived for one reason only, and that is that as a nation we commit to the rule of law. Our differences and our disputes are resolved through the rule of law, the very law that you have taken an oath to uphold. The law is far from perfect, but has provided our nation with a foundation solid enough to be the longest running democracy in the history of the world. Why is policing an honorable and noble profession? Because you are the front line protectors of democracy, you promote freedom and justice every day, you preserve the integrity of the law you have sworn to protect.
In Plato’s “Republic,” he said it doesn’t matter if the cobblers and the masons and the carpenters don’t do their job well, but if the Guardians fail and don’t stay true to the oath – then the democracy will crumble. This is the profession to which you have dedicated your life and the reason why you and your family make the sacrifices that you do daily. For such a time as this you have been called to the kingdom to serve, and when you serve with honor and distinction, you touch lives and preserve the future of a nation.
Henry Ford once said we don’t just make cars, we promote freedom and the democratization of America. Why did he say that to his workers? Because he knew they needed a calling higher then simply making cars to ensure world-class performance. What is your motivation for what you do every day?
I will close by sharing with you the basic mission that as humans we all share during our time on this earth. Regardless of your lot in life, effective living means committing to four basic elements of a purposeful and balanced life.
Our first mission is to “live” -- To live life with purpose and passion to give our best every moment of every day -- To live each day as if it were our last. In this profession we know better than most that tomorrow is promised to no one. So, if there are things you are waiting to do for the right day, if there are things you should say to people in your life but are holding back for whatever reason,
if you have dreams that you are not actively pursuing – then I ask you “what are you waiting for?” 9/11 showed the world that tomorrow is promised to no one and there are no guarantees for any of us. So live each day with the energy and enthusiasm it deserves because this time here on earth is not a dress rehearsal – it deserves your best!
Our second mission is “Love” – to surround ourselves with people we care about and who care about us. It is a basic human need second only to the need to survive. Yet, we take our relationships for granted far too often. Your colleagues at work, your family, neighbors and friends are what make your life special. We succeed and fail at nothing in this life alone. We live in a world of interrelationships and the quality of your life will be determined by the strength of those relationships, not by how many hours you spent at the office. Even the toughest of cops need to love and be loved -- it’s a fundamental purpose in all our lives. When we don’t have it, there is a gap in our life and a hole in our heart that cannot be filled by any other means.
Third is to “Learn” – a constant quest for learning, growth and knowledge. Life means learning something new every day – from cradle to grave. The moment we stop learning, we stop living. The moment we stop growing we are standing still and standing still means we are going backwards because the world will not stand still for you. If you are not moving forward constantly, the world is passing you by! Life is a constant quest for improvement – to be better tomorrow than we are today. As a parent, spouse, employee, neighbor, citizen.
If you can’t say you are better today than you were last week, then what are you learning, where is your growth?
And last is to “Leave A Legacy” – to leave this world better than we found it, to leave our footprints somewhere in this world. To leave something behind that endures long after we are gone. It’s about making certain that our life has had meaning, that our time here has mattered, that we touched something or someone in a significant way that will affect the course of history within the small part of the universe we impact.
When I speak of leaving a legacy I cannot help but think of my uncle Hector Jordan. He was a police officer and a federal drug agent – and I am a small part of his legacy. He blazed new paths, he stood with courage for what he believed, he touched lives in a positive way and even crooks were treated with a generous heart and kind word.
He was killed in the line of duty in 1970. His name is on the wall in our nation’s capital in Judiciary Square alongside the names of 15,000 Guardians who gave their life for all of us. But as it’s inscribed on the memorial wall, it isn’t how they died that made them heroes and that left a legacy. It was how they lived and what they dedicated their life to at that defining moment when they raised their hand and took the oath and were given that beautiful symbol of public trust – a badge! The badge they would be the caretaker of for as long as they honored this profession. For such a time as this they, just as you are too, have been called to serve in this most noble of callings!
I honor all of you for what you do every day, and your families for the willing sacrifice they make for such a noble endeavor. In times of doubt and wonder as to if it’s all worth it our not – I can only hope that my words might be a comfort and reminder of the “promise” you made and the nobility of your life’s work.
Thank you, be safe and God bless!
Community Speech
9 November 2000
I’m flattered and honored that I have been asked to share my thoughts with you this evening … it’s an honor because you are serving your community in so many ways, you are what I call “community warriors” – for that I salute you!
I’ll begin with a story -- it’s called Hey Buddy! …
You see I believe real lasting change can only come when we continuously challenge and change our thinking. It is only when we change what’s in our heads and our hearts that lasting change truly takes place.
So tonight I speak to your hearts!
If we were in the Northern Natal in South Africa I would greet you by saying “Sawa Bona” which is the English equivalent to saying hello – except that it actually means “I see you.”
You would respond by saying: “Sikhona!” Which means “I am here!”
You see, in the Northern Natal tribes of South Africa the belief is that a person exists only because they have been acknowledged by another. Therefore until you see another person, they are not here! When you see them and acknowledge them, you bring them into existence.
An old Zulu folk saying teaches us, “a person is a person because of other people.” In South Africa the belief is that we invoke each other’s potential by our willingness to see the essence of each other. Tonight I am glad you are here – it is each of you that brings me into existence, and it is because of each of you that my potential is invoked. You bring me to life!
In diversity training we call this the Unbuntu Ethic or the Spirit of Ubuntu!
I want you to take a look around the room, at the people who share you vision, your dreams, your hopes and whose fate and future you are tied to … take a few moments and look at your neighbors – what do you see.
I suspect in this room are people you like, some you don’t, there are those you agree with, and those you don’t. There are those you would fight for and those you would not – I could go on and point out the differences that exist in this room – but the reality is none of the differences are as big as the issue that brought you together tonight – that is your hope for a better tomorrow. Your hope for a life filled with peace and prosperity! So, you are united around something much bigger than your differences.
Last night watching the election coverage and reading this mornings paper I kept hearing we are a deeply divided nation. In looking at how people voted, the division was apparent. Minorities voted heavily for one candidate and rarely for the other. Women voted for one candidate and men for the other. And the line was clear -- if you made $75,000 or less who you voted for -- if you made more, you voted for the other. Of course there were exceptions but the pattern of division was clear.
Yet in flipping through the channels and in reading the articles today amidst the talk of great division I heard not one mention of what links us together. What about our humanity, our safety and security, our community, our hopes and dreams? The details might be a bit fuzzy, but the goal is clear. We reach that goal not through division but by embracing one another, by challenging our thinking and as Atticus Finch told his daughter Scout in to Kill a Mockingbird – by not judging until we have walked in another man’s shoes.
Martin Luther King Jr. said:
“In a real sense, all life is inter-related. All men are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. And you can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be. This is the inter-related structure of reality.”
Gandhi said each of us must be the change we want to see in the world. You are all here because you want change, something better than what is.
I could tell you all about the issues of diversity today – who many describe as America’s unresolved dilemma – I could tell you the statistics which illustrate the changing face of America. How the rapid growth of people of color are causing changes in our neighborhoods, our work organizations, our schools and for some of us even in our families – all these changes are the reasons why Bush and Gore started many of their campaign stops saying “como se yama!” Why they at times embarrassingly attempted to be something they are not. Tonight I’ll skip the practical lessons of diversity and talk about the human side.
Many people today are saying that America is a nation facing a “crisis of meaning” that we have lost our sense of purpose and our focus on what is important. I believe this is true, I see it in all professions and at all levels of our communities. We seem to have lost a commitment to quality, and more importantly to one another. We have lost our sense of community and what it means to be good neighbors. We have lost our connectedness to one another – until I see you, you do not exist!
I believe change in our communities comes when we change ourselves first. When we all become leaders and teachers and when we all live our lives modeling the kind of character we expect from others – that’s when we make change, influence lives and leave a legacy. I also believe we make change when we embrace our responsibility to one another.
Here’s an example, prisons in America are a growth industry. We are today allocating dollars to build prisons 15 years in the future. Are we saying that we have basically given up on our minority youth who 15 years down the road will be in those prisons. We are building prisons instead of schools.
12 Year old Gregory Smith, a child prodigy, a freshman in college and a passionate advocate for the world’s youth recently told a group of business people that they should not build another road until every child in America was no longer hungry. That we should not open another business until every child in America was guaranteed a quality education. The businessman sitting next to me said that’s a nice idea but not very practical – and I said why not! Does America need more dot com companies and less investment in our schools for our children? Do we need roads more than we need to feed all our nation’s children? We all know the answer to that – but we don’t give enough thought to these kinds of issues. It’s our humanity that we fail to think about in our pursuit of prosperity.
I was in a hurry getting off a plane the other day, and there was a little old lady barely making it down the jet way and strategically blocking my progress. My instinct was to rush by her, and squeeze between her and the wall. But I stopped just for a second and thought – she is someone’s mother, grandmother, sister –she’s a person who has lived a life and very likely, her struggles somehow made my life’s struggles a bit easier. And it was at that moment I became more human and less driven by time and – it was at that moment I challenged and changed my thinking. Humanity vs. prosperity! When I acknowledged her presence she came into existence.My passion in this second life that I am starting after a life of policing is to touch lives in a positive way. That’s my passion and it is the reason I rise each morning. But the reality is that too few of us have a passion -- for anything. Be it our job, our vocations, our family, our community, our nation or simply a hobby. It is a rarity today to hear people speak with passion about their work – in fact we often ask one another: “what we do for a living when the question should be what do we live to do?!” Maybe because too many of us simply live each day to get by – without a vision for what today means to tomorrow.
If we are to realize the peace and prosperity we all pursue, if we are going to turn our youth around, then we must find ways to discover our own passion, while at the same time igniting a flame in our youth. We must find ways to instill in our youth and our neighborhoods at risk a sense of meaning and worth. Because a life filled daily with despair, lack of opportunity, with violence and without hope for a better tomorrow, leaves little reason for our neighbors at risk and our youth to build toward a future they cannot even dream about.
We are all familiar with Lord Acton’s saying: “Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Well, we can add to that – because the reality is that no power corrupts absolutely. It is a corruption born of despair, hopelessness and apathy!
I am forever grateful that in my youth, growing up in a Latin household and in strong, close knit neighborhoods, I was surrounded by family, friends, neighbors, teachers and even a few bullies and racists to even things out, who all shaped my values, who all contributed to a vision of what I wanted my life to become, who fueled a passion that has given me my life’s vocation and that has brought me here today.
Each of you has the opportunity to do the same thing for the youth of this community, for your neighbors, for those in this community you know and don’t know. That’s the power of leadership, that’s the power of being a role model and that is leaving a legacy and making a difference!
Once again, take a moment and look at your neighbors here tonight – truly look at them -- what do you see now? I suspect for some of you, people look different than before. The key question is who has actually changed. When we change our perspective, when our humanity is in place the world seems less troubled and the people around us less different! When I see you, you are here!
If I can leave a gift to my community, to those oldest of Aurora’s neighborhoods where I grew up, to a future which rests in Aurora’s youth, to our minority communities and neighborhoods at risk– that gift would be that I might somehow be able to offer a sense of meaning, hope and vision for a future that can be better than today.
Tonight, I challenge all of us to commit to doing all that we can as individuals and as organizations to help our community and one another. It starts with us as individuals – and builds to a sense of community and commitment to one another. We must come out of our homes, we must meet and advocate for our neighbors, we must organize our neighborhoods, we must participate in our community affairs – I could go on and on listing the groups in your community that I know need your help – but the bottom line is we all must get involved.
It is only through involvement and a passionate pursuit of our humanity that we will change the world! I know this is an awesome challenge, and dealing with others is often a struggle seeming too big to overcome – so when you face the struggles of daily life, when you are feeling less than a warrior – remember the words of this Poem – it’s called: The Race!
(In it's original writen form)
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 came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.
But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.
In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. 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." It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."
But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. 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.
We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. 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. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.
It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.
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. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.
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. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.
We cannot walk alone.
And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.
We cannot turn back.
There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. 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. We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating: "For Whites Only." We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream."¹
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. 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. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.
Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
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."
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
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.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today!
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."
This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.
With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.
And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:
My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride,
From every mountainside, let freedom ring!
And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.
And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.
Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.
Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.
Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.
But not only that:
Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.
From every mountainside, let freedom ring.
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! Free at last!
Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!3MLK I Have A Dream Speech (Spanish)
(In it's original writen form)
Hace cien años, un gran Americano, en cuya simbólica sombra estamos hoy parados, firmó la Proclamación de la Emancipación. Este trascendental decreto vino como un gran rayo de luz de esperanza para millones de esclavos Negros, chamuscados en las llamas de una marchita injusticia. Vino como un lindo amanecer al final de una larga noche de cautiverio. Pero cien años después, el Negro aún no es libre; cien años después, la vida del Negro aún es tristemente lisiada por las esposas de la segregación y las cadenas de la discriminación; cien años después, el Negro vive en una isla solitaria en medio de un inmenso océano de prosperidad material; cien años después, el Negro todavía languidece en las esquinas de la sociedad Americana y se encuentra desterrado en su propia tierra.
Entonces hemos venido hoy día aquí a dramatizar una condición vergonzosa. En un sentido hemos venido a la capital de nuestro País a cobrar un cheque. Cuando los arquitectos de nuestra república escribieron las magníficas palabras de la Constitución y la Declaración de Independencia, ellos firmaban un pagaré del cual cada Americano sería el heredero. Este pagaré era la promesa que todo hombre, sí, el hombre negro y el hombre blanco, tendrían garantizados los derechos inalienables de vida, libertad, y búsqueda de la felicidad.
Es obvio hoy día que América ha incumplido este pagaré en lo que concierne a sus ciudadanos de color. En lugar de honrar esta sagrada obligación, América ha dado a la gente Negra un cheque malo; un cheque que ha regresado con el sello “fondos insuficientes.” Pero rehusamos creer que el Banco de Justicia está quebrado. Rehusamos creer que no haya suficientes fondos en las grandes bóvedas de oportunidad de este País. Y entonces hemos venido a cobrar este cheque, el cheque que nos dará sobre manera la riqueza de libertad y la seguridad de justicia.
También hemos venido a este sagrado lugar para recordar a América la urgencia impetuosa de ahora. Este no es el momento de tener el lujo de enfriarse o tomar tranquilizantes de gradualismo. Ahora es el momento de hacer realidad las promesas de Democracia; ahora es el momento de salir del obscuro y desolado valle de la segregación al camino alumbrado de la justicia racial; ahora es el momento de sacar nuestro País de las arenas movedizas de la injusticia racial, a la piedra sólida de la hermandad; ahora es el momento de hacer de la justicia una realidad para todos los hijos de Dios. Sería fatal para la nación pasar por alto la urgencia del momento. Este verano ardiente por el legítimo descontento del Negro, no pasará hasta que no haya un otoño vigoroso de libertad e igualdad.
1963 no es el fin, si no el principio. Y los que pensaban que el Negro necesitaba desahogarse para sentirse contento, tendrán un rudo despertar si el País regresa al mismo oficio. No habrá ni descanso ni tranquilidad en América hasta que al Negro se le garantice sus derechos de ciudadanía. Los remolinos de la rebelión continuarán a sacudir las bases de nuestra nación hasta que surja el esplendoroso día de la justicia.
Pero hay algo que yo debo decir a mi gente, los cuales están parados en el umbral gastado que conduce al palacio de la justicia. En el proceso de ganar el lugar que nos corresponde, no debemos ser culpables de hechos censurables. No busquemos satisfacer nuestra sed de libertad con tomar de la taza de la amargura y del odio. Siempre tendremos que conducir nuestra lucha en el plano alto de la dignidad y disciplina. No podemos permitir que nuestras protestas creativas se degeneren en violencia física. Una y otra vez debemos elevarnos a las majestuosas alturas del encuentro de la fuerza física con la fuerza del alma. La maravillosa nueva militancia, la cual ha envuelto a la comunidad Negra, no debería llevarnos a desconfiar de toda la gente blanca; porque varios de nuestros hermanos blancos, como se ve hoy día por su presencia aquí, han venido a darse cuenta que su destino esta amarrado con nuestro destino. Y ellos han llegado a darse cuenta que su libertad esta inseparablemente unida a nuestra libertad. No podemos caminar solos. Y al caminar, debemos hacer la promesa que siempre marcharemos adelante. No podemos volver atrás.
Hay aquellos que están preguntando a los devotos de los Derechos Civiles, “Cuando estarán satisfechos?” Nunca podremos estar satisfechos mientras que el Negro sea víctima de horrores indescriptibles de brutalidad policial; nunca podremos estar satisfechos mientras que nuestros cuerpos, pesados por la fatiga de viajar, no podemos alojarnos en los moteles de las carreteras y en los hoteles de las ciudades; no podremos estar satisfechos mientras que la mobilidad básica del Negro es de un barrio pequeño a uno más grande; nunca podremos estar satisfechos mientras que nuestros hijos están despojados de su personalidad y robados de su dignidad por un letrero escrito “Sólo Para Blancos,” no podremos estar satisfechos mientras que el Negro de Mississippi no pueda votar y el Negro de New York crea que no tiene nadie por quién votar. No! No, no estamos satisfechos, y no estaremos satisfechos hasta “que la justicia corra como el agua y las virtudes como una fuerte quebrada,“Yo no desconozco que algunos de ustedes han venido pasta aquí con grandes esfuerzos y tribulaciones. Algunos de ustedes han llegado recién de unas angostas celdas. Algunos de ustedes han venido de áreas donde su búsqueda de libertad los ha dejado golpeados por la tormenta de persecución y derrumbados por los vientos de la brutalidad policíaca. Ustedes han sido los veteranos de sufrimiento creativo. Continúen trabajando con la fé de que el sufrimiento no merecido es redentorio. Regresen a Mississippi; Regresen a Alabama; Regresen a South Carolina; Regresen a Georgia; Regresen a Louisiana; Regresen a los barrios bajos y a los ghettos de nuestras ciudades Norteñas, sabiendo que de alguna manera esta situación podrá y será cambiada. No nos revolquemos en el valle de la desesperación.
Entonces les digo a ustedes, mis amigos, que aunque nosotros enfrentemos las dificultades de hoy y de mañana, aún yo tengo un sueño. Es un sueño profundamente arraigado en el sueño Americano, que un día esta nación surgirá y vivirá verdaderamente de su credo, “nosotros mantenemos estos derechos patentes, que todo hombre es creado igual.” Yo tengo un sueño que ese día en las tierras rojas de Georgia, hijos de esclavos anteriores e hijos de dueños de esclavos anteriores se podrán sentar juntos a la mesa de la hermandad. Yo tengo un sueño que un día aún el estado de Mississippi, un estado ardiente por e1 calor de justicia, ardiente por el calor de la opresión, será transformado en un oasis de libertad y justicia. Yo tengo un sueño que mis cuatro pequeños hijos algún día vivirán en una nación donde no serán juzgados por el color de la piel, sino por el contenido de sus carácteres.
Hoy yo tengo un sueno!
Yo tengo un sueño que un día en Alabama, con sus racistas viciosos, con su Governador con sus labios goteando palabras de interposición y nulificación, un día allí en Alabama los pequeños negros, niños y niñas, podrán unir las manos con pequeños blancos, niños y niñas, como hermanos y hermanas.
Hoy yo tengo un sueno!
Yo tengo un sueño que algun día cada valle será elevado, y cada colina y montaña serán hechas llanas. Los lugares más ásperos serán aplanados y los lugares torcidos serán hechos rectos, “y la gloria de Dios será revelada y todo género humano se verá junto.
Esta es nuestra esperanza. Esta es la fé con la cual yo regreso al Sur. Con esta fé podremos labrar de la montaña de la desesperación, una piedra de esperanza. Con esta fé podremos transformar el sonido discordante de nuestra nación en una hermosa sinfonía de hermandad. Con esta fé podremos trabajar juntos, rezar juntos, luchar juntos, ir a la cárcel juntos, pararse juntos por la libertad, sabiendo que algún día seremos libres, y este es el día. Este será el día cuando todos los hijos de Dios podrán cantar con nuevos sentidos “Mi País es de ti, dulce tierra de libertad a ti yo canto. Tierra donde mi padre murió, tierra del orgullo de los peregrinos, de cada lado de la montaña, dejemos resonar la libertad.” Y si América va a ser una grande nación, ésto tendrá que hacerse realidad.
Entonces dejen resonar la libertad desde la cima de los montes prodigiosos de New Hampshire; dejen resonar la libertad desde las poderosas montañas de New York; dejen resonar la libertad desde las alturas de las Alleghenies de Pennsylvania; dejen resonar la libertad desde las rocas cubiertas de nieve de Colorado; dejen resonar la libertad desde las curvosas cuestas de California. Pero no sólo ésto. Dejen resonar la libertad de la Montaña de Piedra de Georgia; dejen resonar la libertad desde la montaña Lookout de Tennessee; dejen resonar la libertad desde cada colina y montaña de Mississippi. “De cada lado de montaña dejen resonar la libertad.” Y cuando ésto pase y cuando dejemos resonar la libertad, cuando la dejemos resonar de cada aldea y cada caserío, de cada estado y cada ciudad, podemos apurar el día en que todos los hijos de Dios, hombre negro y hombre blanco, Judíos y Cristianos, Protestantes y Católicos, podemos unir nuestras manos y cantar en las palabras del viejo espiritual Negro: “Libre al Fin, Libre al Fin; Gracias Dios Omnipotente, somos libres al fin.”
