This is an archived USAID document retained on this web site as a matter of public record.

Administrator J. Brian Atwood
Celebrating the Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Washington, D.C., January 15, 1998
U.S. Agency for International Development

I feel sorry for those young Americans who did not experience the 1960's. I also feel sorry for those of us who did.

The generation born during or after the Age of Aquarius will never fully understand the passion that accompanied the national debates of the day. They will never fully understand the idealism and the danger of the civil rights struggle.

Nor will they ever fully comprehend the battle to define the meaning of patriotism. Was it loyalty to the government's foreign policy of the day? Or, was it the perceived obligation to protest against that policy? The war in Vietnam and the civil rights struggle added up to as much domestic turmoil and division as this nation has ever experienced short of the Civil War itself.

But times like this produce giants. Out of the passion of debate certain voices captured our imagination, reminded us of our principles and inspired us to define our views and, subsequently, our entire lives.

The American citizens who listened to Martin Luther King define his dream for America at the Lincoln Memorial in August of 1963 will never think the same way again about their country. The power and the beauty of the rhetoric was matched by the appeal to the aspirations that every father and mother has for their own children. Listen to these words:

"I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."

Dr. King knew that despite all the overt discrimination reflected in the America of the day, despite all the inequalities in American life in 1963, no American citizen who understood the fundamentals of our society could listen to these words and reject the logic of his appeal. The "I Have a Dream" speech reflected the essence of the American experiment -- the essence of our very being as a nation.

This speech may have been his greatest, but Martin Luther King's life work is so much more significant than any single speech. In 1964 the Civil Rights Act was enacted making all Americans equal under the law. In 1965, the Voting Rights Act gave the vote to disenfranchised African Americans. Both laws gave the federal government essential enforcement authorities. These laws even more than any previous Supreme Court decisions corrected the most glaring flaw of our Constitution. Dr. King's greatest triumph was to make all Americans equal under the law.

In his defense of the Amistad Africans, John Quincy Adams (or was it Anthony Hopkins?) predicted that a war between the states might be needed to resolve the issue of slavery. He called this civil war "the last battle of the revolutionary war." As we know, the Civil War ended slavery but it did not make all Americans equal under the law. Martin Luther King accomplished what a war could not. And amazingly, he did it by promoting a philosophy of non-violence.

That is why we have declared a national holiday to honor Dr. King. This was not done to please African Americans or to make them proud, though I'm sure African Americans are very proud of this man. Dr. King is honored by all Americans because he more than any man in the 20th century made our nation whole. He persuaded us to "live out the true meaning of (our nation's) creed." In so doing, he became as important to our national heritage as any of the original Founding Fathers.

Some three months after Dr. King's Lincoln Memorial speech, John F. Kennedy said: "A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces, but also by the men it honors, the men it remembers." He added, "The men who create power make an indispensable contribution to the nation's greatness. But the men who question power make a contribution just as indispensable."

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. never held public office. He never served in a government agency. He never even lived in Washington! But Dr. King wielded tremendous power. He was a great leader because he evoked the highest principles, he advocated non-violence, he preached love and equality. He made those who listened to him feel the burden of fellow Americans who could not live the American dream. He made us feel guilty and he compelled us to act. He was our national conscience.

That is why I feel sorry for those of you who did not experience the 1960's. It was such an inspiring time. And it was such a sad time.

One month after John Kennedy spoke the words I have quoted today, he was assassinated. A few years after Dr. King's great legislative triumphs he was assassinated. That is why I also feel so sorry for those of my generation who had the privilege of hearing the inspired appeals of those wonderful leaders. We will never forget the pain, the sense of loss.

Today is not a day for sadness however. Today, the actual birthday of Dr. King, is a day for rededication. The theme of our event is "Remember! Celebrate! Act! A day on, not a day off!"

Dr. King would have approved. For if he were to return today, he would tell us that the job is far from done.

We pause to remember, but we must not stand still long; the work is not finished.

Dr. Benjamin Mays, the long-time president of Morehouse College, was Dr. King's friend. Dr. Mays stood beside Dr. King in the struggle, walked behind Dr. King's casket, preached at the funeral on the campus both men loved.

Benjamin Mays understood disappointment and pain, but he did not give in to despair. He explained why in these words:

"The tragedy in life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach. It isn't a calamity to die with dreams unfulfilled, but it is a calamity not to dream.... It is not a disgrace not to reach the stars, but it is a disgrace to have no stars to reach for. Not failure, but low aim, is sin."

So "Remember! Celebrate! Act!" And do not fail to dream wherever you are in life. That is what Dr. King's life should mean to us.

This is an archived USAID document retained on this web site as a matter of public record.

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