What Does “I Have a Dream” Mean To YOU?

Hello, Elegant Lovelies,

It is a 12-degree snowy day today and it is also the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. I know I that there will be posts on Facebook and YouTube of different speeches by King giving honor to the man who preached PEACE. I know today is a day off from work for some. However, I hope that we will all take some time out to reflect what this day is all about.
Embed from Getty Images

Please listen to the “I Have A Dream” Speech, by Martin Luther King, Jr.

National Archives PDF of ‘I Have A Dream‘ Speech here

What Does The I Have A Dream Speech mean to you?
I know that as a person who is a honey peach caramel complexion that I actually can sit in any seat on the bus and not be asked to get up because of the color of m skin. Also, I can drink a sip of water from any fountain or go into a restroom I choose without having to look at a sign that says, NO COLOREDS. I know that my godson can go to a school where all lovely colors are welcomed. We aren’t looking at race, but instead focusing on their knowledge.

JT with her godson, Zach.

With where the world is going today, King’s message is even more important and never gets old. His message never gets stale or trendy, no matter what the decade or century.

The naysayers say that the ‘I Have A Dream’ speech was too sappy or too sugary and that we need to fight back with hateful verbal attacks, and not with love. I believe that those naysayers are wrong and that love is the only way.

And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
Colossians 3:14 (NIV)

Hate is what started all this mess; and love, joy, and peace will be the building blocks that will change it. The I Have A Dream speech is not just for people with African dominate DNA. It is a message for the world and that is why it resonates through the ages. People try to put others in a box that represents them and we can’t because we are all unique.
This year I am celebrating each month with my hubby our 20th wedding anniversary. I married a man who has European dominate DNA. When we look at each other, we see best friends in this thing we call life, we see love. God blessed me with a man who truly loves me for me, and that runs deeper than the color of my skin.

The Media
Today we are in an age where advertisers are now placing on billboards multicultural singles, couples, and families in ads of all different kinds from buying a home to styling natural hair. That’s the way it should have always been, everyone is unique and beautiful. I hope the marketing teams of these brands keep it going at even more in an effort to be inclusive.

Reflecting
I remember going on a retreat with my (future) husband in preparation for our wedding in 1999. The St. Charles Lwanga Center offered a pre-marital retreat for couples who were planning to be married in the Catholic Church. We had to take quizzes to measure compatibility and after that, you go on a retreat to meet other couples like you. We would discuss with couples such things as finances, kids, etc. before getting married because you both want to be on one accord. I was a great start because you learn to communicate with each other and talk about everything.
One day when we had a break between sessions, Jay and I went outside to get some fresh air and just hugged each other. Nothing gushy or mushy, just a simple hug. The retreat was in a predominantly African American neighborhood. A black man driving in a car stopped at a stop light and yelled, “Man what are you doing, you can’t hug her!” and drove off. We just looked at each other in astonishment that this was happening in 1999. Well, that didn’t stop us and here we are twenty years later. Some would say that this wasn’t racism because African Americans are not capable of being racist because they were oppressed then and now. Love goes beyond color of the skin. Racism can come in all shapes and sizes and it takes love to stop it in its tracks.