I Have A Dream: The Demise of a Black and White World

I have a dream that is much like the dream of Dr. King and as we celebrate/commemorate his achievements, I would like to build upon his foundations of oneness and the unity of mankind. My dream, like Dr. King’s is rooted in the American dream that “all men are created equal.” Though historical forces have often prevented the reality of the American dream for many of its citizens, today, we can all work towards making that dream a reality, but in order to do it, we must rid ourselves of the segregationist mentality that was born early in the idea of America.

While the ink on the Constitution proclaiming the equality of man was still wet, some in America were denied status as men and ultimately enslaved by other men This was the story of the American Negro. Later referred to as "colored" and then as “blacks” as a way of denoting their highly melanized skin, the sentiment of “blackness” is now used as a tool to segregate the American populace. Intentionally or unintentionally, the term, "blacks" now simply segregates one group from the other, performing the duties much like the signs from the Jim Crow era.

There is history and then there is “black” history. There is the church and there is the “black” church. There are communities and then there are “black” communities. The list goes on and on. I’m not a sociologist, anthropologist or genetic scientist, but I know that man was not created to be “black” or “white.” Skin color identification is a human invention and a mistake. Add to that mistake the capability of a morally depraved human heart and you end up with atrocities like the transatlantic slave trade and the hundreds of years of slavery in America.

The good news is that when we know better, we can do better. Today we can do better. Hearts of goodwill and virtue can overcome the vitriol and hate of the depraved human heart and we can right the wrongs and move

societies in new directions. Today we can free ourselves from skin-color segregation. Today our institutions can remove standards based on the amount of melanin a person is able to produce. Today we can decide that we no longer want to be separated by our differences but instead be united by our commonalities. This would be a step towards true integration. That was Dr King's dream.

Dr. King was pro-humanity. My dream today is to live in that sense of humanity. To live in a society of oneness and of equality where all men are valued because they are a part of humankind. The goal is oneness. And the beauty of oneness is understanding that oneness is not “sameness.” In every family, every day, people realize their differences and learn to live, grow and thrive because of those differences. That can be true of us because we are indeed all family, whether we realize it or not. Of one blood have we all been created and so today, to honor what Dr. King stood for, I push for the demise of the black and white world that we have created and now give all of my energy, strength, and effort to making us all ONE! We are the HUMAN race!