Thursday, April 9, 2009
I Have a Dream, and Barack Obama Isn’t it
"This week, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow the Western World now stands, was elected President of the United States. This momentous occasion has come forty-years after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., and one hundred and forty years after the abolition of slavery.
"But one hundred and forty years on, this is not the end of the quest for equality. One hundred and forty years on, a black man can achieve, and still have his achievements judged by the colour of his skin. One hundred and forty years on, a man’s ethnicity is still considered first and his character second. One hundred and forty years on the Negro is still considered the Other, in spite of the power he is allowed. Today, the vision of Martin Luther King Jr. is only partly realised.
"Barack Obama’s election to the throne of the Free World is significant. He is a standard-bearer in the continuing march towards equality, from which there is no turning back. At this historic time, British commentators have asked, 'Should we appoint a black Prime Minister?' This question sweeps away a Civil Rights movement one hundred and forty years in the making."
"But one hundred and forty years on, this is not the end of the quest for equality. One hundred and forty years on, a black man can achieve, and still have his achievements judged by the colour of his skin. One hundred and forty years on, a man’s ethnicity is still considered first and his character second. One hundred and forty years on the Negro is still considered the Other, in spite of the power he is allowed. Today, the vision of Martin Luther King Jr. is only partly realised.
"Barack Obama’s election to the throne of the Free World is significant. He is a standard-bearer in the continuing march towards equality, from which there is no turning back. At this historic time, British commentators have asked, 'Should we appoint a black Prime Minister?' This question sweeps away a Civil Rights movement one hundred and forty years in the making."