Season 2, Episode 02: Celebrating MLK 2022 (I have a Dream/Life Blueprint)

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Hello everyone, thank you so much for being here with me. Today is Monday, January 7th, 2022, and today we celebrate the life and the work of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a man who definitely had an impact not just in America but really around the world supporting civil rights and also the voting right, most basic right in any democracy for a very significant segment of the US population. So welcome to the podcast today. And we're going to get started with one of the best speeches of all time, right? "I Have a Dream." I think everybody, if they relate to Dr. King in any way, they know, definitely know about that one. Speech. And personally, I believe dreams are extremely important, and anything that is worth having, achieving, really starts with a dream. And then you kind of have to figure out how to realize your dream, how to bring it into reality. And it's definitely something, you know, if it's worth doing, it's not something that you can do all by yourself. I think it's going to take a team of people, right? So let's start with the "I Have a Dream" speech, really the speech that changed everything during the civil rights movement.

I have the pleasure to present to you Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation. Five score years ago, a great American in whose symbolic shadow we stand today signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves. Who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity. But 100 years later, the Negro still is not free. 100 years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. 100 years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty. In the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity, 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 one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with sweltering with the heat of oppression will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have a dream. That my four little 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. I have a dream today. I have a dream that one day down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification. One day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today. I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted. And every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day. This will be the day This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning: My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrims' pride. From every mountainside, let freedom ring. And if America is to be a great nation, This must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania. Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado. Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California. Not only that, Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia. Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee. Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring. And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, When we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

I want to ask you a question, and that is—

Well, that is quite a speech. And by the way, if you are watching me live on LinkedIn now, if you have any question, please type it in the comment. But yeah, I Have a Dream is definitely an iconic speech. Personally, you know, as everybody knows, I am an immigrant to the United States. I happen to be Black. And I believe that today America is the greatest country that's ever been. There are more opportunities in this land than anywhere else, right? Part of the reason why after 9/11 I joined the U.S. Navy, and I am really willing to give my life in its defense and defending the great Constitution we have, right? We are a constitutional republic here in the United States of America. And I believe— that America, when it was created, really had great ideals for mankind. But unfortunately, uh, when it started in the 1700s, 1776 to be exact, uh, really the only privilege and rights really belong to white male. Even white women were not included. Blacks definitely were not included, and American Indians were not included, Native American. And Hispanic Americans were not included at all. So it's been a very, very long fight, a long struggle. But eventually, I think we are coming to live out the creed of our nation, right, in the Declaration of Independence, when it says that we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. And that includes everyone. And one of the things I would like to make sure, you know, looking at my two beautiful daughters who are going to be the future of America, is to make sure that America become more inclusive, right? Diversity, equity, and inclusion extremely important, and the sense of belonging too, for everybody, not just white people, not just white male,, but for women, for men, for Blacks, for brown, for everybody, right? No discrimination whatsoever. Everybody needs to be able to have a seat at the table and decide and be able, be afforded the opportunity to contribute to this great nation. So I do believe America is a great nation, the greatest nation that's ever been. And I think we can make our nation an even more prosperous, more equitable nation. For all. Um, another thing, uh, Dr. King said in his speech, talking about Georgia, Mississippi, and Alabama— when I first came to the US, I lived in Alabama for almost 15 years, right? That's a pretty, uh, long time. And, uh, I think there is a new South, right? It's not as racist as it used to be back in the '60s where Again, a large portion of the population were denied their fundamental constitutionally protected right to vote. That's just not right. And we definitely need to make America more inclusive going forward. But I have seen it, and most of you guys know I am a Christian, so a disciple of Christ. Following the teaching of Jesus. And it was just shocking to me when I came in 1996, right? Sunday morning was like one of the most really segregationist hours of the week, right? Because you would have white churches and black churches, and people just didn't come together. It was extremely rare to see a church where black and whites came and worship the same God together, which is actually very, very, very sad because even today in 2022, there are still many churches that are mostly black or mostly white or mostly Hispanic or, or whatever, where people really separate them to themselves based on the color of their skin. And they saying that they worship God, a God supposedly of love. So I don't really see that There are a few churches where you can really see the realization of Dr. Martin Luther King's dream. When he says, "I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood." I think it's really beautiful to see. We don't see that very, very often, but when you do, it really is— something. But, um, anyway, we are celebrating the life and the work of Dr. Martin Luther King. The fight is not over yet. Now, we've had a Black president, Barack Obama, but we still have a lot of work to do in this country defending the Constitution and ensuring that America is a fair country for everybody. Again, regardless of your race, your background, your ethnic origin, or your gender, it doesn't matter. Everybody should have the same equal rights under the law. And America is definitely the best country in the world where that does happen. So this is a wonderful speech, probably one of the very best, best, best one, and it's always going to be remembered. But yes, from every mountainside, let freedom ring. Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty. We are free at last. So very, very glad to be a US citizen, very glad America is my country, and very glad for whatever I might be able to do to help America be a better, fairer, more equitable country for all. Now, in addition to I Have a Dream speech, there is another speech that Martin Luther King made. Actually, that's probably the first speech I heard of him before I heard about "I Have a Dream." I think I was maybe 9 or 10 years old. This speech literally changed my life. I think it kind of put me on a path for personal development. It was, I believe, the title of the speech was about what is in the life blueprint. And right here, I believe it was in Philadelphia, Martin Luther King was talking to a bunch of kids in high school. But just listen to the speech. It's very short, but it's just about being excellent and finding a way to be the very, very best at whatever it is that you do in life. Here we go.

I want to ask you a question, and that is, what is in your life's blueprint. This is the most important and crucial period of your lives, for what you do now and what you decide now at this age may well determine which way your life shall go. And whenever a building is constructed, you usually have an architect who draws a blueprint, and that blueprint serves as the pattern, as the guide as the model for those who are to build the building. And a building is not well erected without a good, sound, and solid blueprint. Now each of you is in the process of building the structure of your lives. And the question is whether you have a proper, a solid, and a sound blueprint. And I want to suggest some of the things that should be in your life's blueprint. Number one in your life's blueprint should be a deep belief in your own dignity, your own worth, and your own somebodyness. Don't allow anybody to make you feel that you are nobody. Always feel that you count. Always feel that you have worth. And always feel that your life has ultimate significance. Now that means that you should not be ashamed of your color. You know, it's very unfortunate that in so many instances our society has placed a stigma on the Negro's color. And you know, there are some Negroes who are ashamed of themselves. But don't be ashamed of your color. Don't be ashamed of your biological features, somehow you must be able to say in your own lives and really believe it, "I am black but beautiful," and believe it in your heart. And therefore you need not be learned lured into purchasing cosmetics advertised to make you lighter. Neither do you need to process your hair to make it appear straight. I have good hair, and it is good as anybody else's hair in the world, and we better believe that. Now, in your life's blueprint, be sure that you have that— a principle of somebodyness. Secondly, in your life's blueprint, you must have as a basic principle the determination to achieve excellence. In your various fields of endeavor. You're going to be deciding as the days and the years unfold what you will do in life, what your life's work will be. And once you discover what it will be, set out to do it and to do it well. And I say to you, my young friends, that doors are opening to each of you. Doors of opportunity are opening to each of you that were not open to your mothers and to your fathers. And the great challenge facing you is to be ready to enter these doors as they open. Ralph Waldo Emerson, the great essayist, said in a lecture back in 1871 that if a man can write a better book or preach a better sermon or make a better mousetrap than his neighbor, even if he builds his house in the woods, the world will make a beaten path to his door. That hadn't always been true, but it will become increasingly true. And so I would urge you to study hard, to burn the midnight oil. I would say to you, don't drop out of school. And I understand all of the sociological reasons why we often drop out of school, but I urge you, in spite of your economic plight, in spite of the situation that you are forced to live so often with intolerable conditions, stay in school. And when you discover what you're gonna be in life, set out to do it as if God Almighty called you at this particular moment in history to do it. And just don't set out to do a good Negro job, but do a good job that anybody could do. Don't set out to be just a good Negro doctor, or a good Negro lawyer, or a good Negro schoolteacher, or a good Negro preacher, or a good Negro barber, or beautician, or a good Negro skilled laborer, for if you set out to do that, you have already flunked your matriculation exam for entrance into the university of integration. Set out to do a good job and do that job so well that the living, the dead, or the unborn couldn't do it any better. If it falls your lot to be a street sweeper, Sweep streets like Michelangelo painted pictures. Sweep streets like Beethoven composed music. Sweep streets like Leontyne Price sings before the Metropolitan Opera. Sweep streets like Shakespeare wrote poetry. Sweep streets so well that all the host of heaven and earth will have to pause and say, "Here lived a great street sweeper who swept his job well." If you can't be a pine on the top of the hill, be a scrub in the valley. But be the best little scrub on the side of the rill. Be a bush if you can't be a tree. If you can't be a highway, just be a trail. If you can't be the sun, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win or you fail. Be the best of whatever you are. These days we already have some noble examples of black men and black women who demonstrated to us that human nature cannot be catalogued. They in their own lives have walked through long and desolate nights of oppression, and yet they've risen up and plunged against cloud-filled nights of affliction, new and blazing stars of inspiration. And so from an old slave cabin of Virginia's hills, Booker T. Washington rose up to be one of America's great leaders. He lit a torch in Alabama, and darkness fled in that setting. Yes, you should know this because it's in your own city. From a poverty-stricken area of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Marian Anderson rose up to be the world's greatest contralto, so that a Toscanini could say that a voice like this comes only once in a century, and Sibelius of Finland could say, "My roof is too low for such a voice." voice from the red hills of Gordon County, Georgia. And the arms of a mother who could neither read nor write, Roland Hayes rose up to be one of the world's great singers and carried his melodious voice into the palaces and mansions of kings and queens. From crippling circumstances, there came a George Washington Carver to carve for himself an imperishable niche In the annals of science, there was a star in the diplomatic sky, and then came Ralph Bunche, the grandson of a slave preacher. He reached up and grabbed it and allowed it to shine in his life with all of its scintillating beauty. There was a star in the athletic sky, and then came Jackie Robinson in his day, and Willie Mays In his day with their powerful bats and their calm spirits. Then came Jesse Owens with his fleet and dashing feet. Then came Joe Louis and Muhammad Ali with their educated fists. All of them came to tell us that we can be somebody and to justify the conviction of the poet, fleecy locks and black complexion cannot forfeit nature's claim. Skin may differ, but affection dwells in black and white the same. And if I were so tall as to reach the pole, or to grasp the ocean at a span, I must be measured by my soul. The mind is the standard of the man. Finally— And finally, in your life's blueprint must be a commitment to the eternal principles of beauty, love, and justice. Don't allow anybody to pull you so low as to make you hate them. Don't allow anybody to cause you to lose your self-respect to the point that you do not struggle for justice. However young you are, you have a responsibility to seek to make your nation a better nation in which to live. You have a responsibility to seek to make life better for everybody. And so you must be involved in the struggle for freedom and justice. Now, in this struggle for freedom and justice, there are many constructive things that we all can do and that we all must do. And we must not give ourselves to those things which will not solve our problems. You've heard the word nonviolent and you've heard the word violent. I happen to believe in nonviolence. We struggle with this method with young people and adults alike all over the South, and we have won some significant victories. And we've got to struggle with it all over the North because the problems are as serious in the North as they are in the South. But I believe as we struggle with these problems, we've got to struggle with them with a method that can be militant but at the same time does not destroy life or property. And so our slogan must not be "Burn, baby, burn." It must be "Build, baby, build." Organize, organize, organize. Yes, our slogan must be: Learn, baby, learn, so that we can earn, baby, earn. And with a powerful commitment, I believe that we can transform dark yesterdays of injustice into bright towards the Mars of justice and humanity. Let us keep going toward the goal of selfhood, toward the realization of the dream of brotherhood, and toward the realization of the dream of understanding, goodwill. Let nobody stop us. I close by quoting once more the man that the young lady quoted, that magnificent black bard who has now passed on, Langston Hughes. One day he wrote a poem entitled "Mother to Son." The mother didn't always have her grammar right, but she uttered words of great symbolic profundity. Well, son, I'll tell you, life for me ain't been no crystal stair. It's had tacks in it, boards torn up places with no carpet on the floor, bare. But all the time I's been a-climbin' on and reachin' landin's and turnin' corners and sometimes goin' in the dark where they ain't been no light. So boy, don't you stop now. Don't you sit down on the steps 'cause you finds it's kinda hard. But I's still going, boy. I still climbing, and life for me ain't been no crystal stair. Well, life for none of us has been a crystal stair, but we must keep moving, we must keep going. If you can't fly, run. If you can't run, walk. If you can't walk, crawl, but by all means, keep moving.

All right, that's it. This is the second speech, really the first one I've heard from Dr. Martin Luther King, which I believe is really life-changing. So this is going to be the end of this podcast. In the next podcast, which will start in just a few minutes. I'm going to unpack that a little bit, and I'm going to be talking about goal settings and what we need to do in order to be more successful in 2022. So see you in just a little while.

Bye.

Thank you for listening to the Leadership and Success Podcast with your host, Coach BZ. If you like what you heard, please subscribe to our channels and come back for more wisdom nuggets on how you may develop develop into a better leader and achieve greater levels of success. Leadership is the most critical skill. The world will always need leaders to lead others, deploy the next disruptive technology, or execute a business strategy. You may as well decide on counting yourself among the 21st century leaders. See you right here next time on the Leadership and Success Podcast with Coach BZ.