Picture: Sydney Morning Herald/AP
As his military leaders prepared for a possible missile strike, President Barack Obama addressed thousands gathered at the Lincoln Memorial in tribute to one of last century’s greatest proponents of non-violence, Martin Luther King, who 50 years ago today inspired a quarter of million people with an address now known simply as the I Have a Dream speech.
At the Lincoln Memorial on a day of warm summer rain rather than the sunblasted heat of the original March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, President Obama said of those who attended five decades ago that, ‘‘In the face of hatred, they prayed for their tormenters. In the face of violence, they stood up and sat in with the moral force of non-violence.’’
‘‘Because they marched, the voting rights law was signed. Because they marched, doors of opportunity and education swung open so their daughters and sons could finally imagine a life for themselves beyond washing somebody else’s laundry or shining somebody else’s shoes.”
“Because they marched, city councils changed and state legislatures changed and Congress changed and, yes, eventually the White House changed.’’
Full Story: Obama honours Martin Luther King on 50th anniversary of the March on Washington
Source:Sydney Morning Herald