The I Have a Dream Speech spoken by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. has been realized through commitment by millions of people and not all of them were black. African Americans have been protesting since the 19th century and fighting for equality and justice. Since that time with some Caucasian allies to come and render help for the cause as well. As soon as Dr. King stepped foot on that podium he immediately impacted the world with his 1963 speech. 

Many have stood, faced abuse and sacrificed more than the imaginable including people in the modern day who still protest for civil rights for all people. Dr. King sacrificed himself by choosing 14 days of incarceration instead of a $10 fine plus the court costs for us so we didn’t have to. Most of us would pay the fine. Choosing the easy path does not represent commitment or sacrifice. The amount of commitment and sacrifice it would take for us in the 21st century to make sure Dr. King’s dream gets realized would take more years since this generation is seemingly not as committed to a cause. Even Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Make sure you sweep the street really well, because when the next person comes behind you they’re gonna say this person has swept the street very well.” Meaning due to the color of your skin you have to do two times the better job in order to exemplify what you can do. Dr. King has always encouraged people to fight for their beliefs. He once stated, “If you can’t fly, then run, if you can’t run, then walk, and if you can’t walk, then crawl, but whatever you do keep moving forward.” King’s speech has inspired a lot of people, even young people like myself to continue learning about how we can realize his dream.

In 2020, a riot broke out and people around the U.S. were protesting for black rights because of George Floyd. He was killed by excessive police force. There were people in every state in the United States who were fighting for justice, and some were playing Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s speech on repeat toward the clouds in protest. Though some chose riots and looting, it was not a way to find justice. Dr. King once said himself, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” “I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality.” We should not be fighting for equality and justice withviolence because it goes against what Dr. King’s dream stands for. We must sacrificenonviolence, our voice and project words of peace to those who think racism is valid. We will keep doing this by showing the commitment we have to make sure Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream gets realized by not only the nation but the entire world.