And the Fight Continues 48 Years Later Martin Luther King

James Housey

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Martin Luther King Jr.

And the fight continues 48 years later

The date is August 28, 1963, and a mixed crowd of over 250,000 civil-rights supporters attending the March on Washington are assembled in the vicinity of the tallest monument in the District of Columbia, commonly known as Washington D.C. The Washington Monument is the name of the historical landmark located in the nation's capital. Segregation has drawn a line of deep ethnical division throughout the country, and the March on Washington has been organized to urge support for pending civil-rights legislation. The crowd seems anxious, as if they have foreseen the momentous moment that is about to occur.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King was five feet six and a half inches returned to Washington 48 years later standing - - 30-feet high in 159 pieces of granite sent by boat. However this time he returned with controversy from all races of American citizens. The "Stone of Hope" statue of Dr. King was sculpted in China by a Chinese sculptor out of Chinese granite and shipped to the United States where it was assembled by Chinese workers. The Chinese workers were paid nothing - - which would seem to me to violate not only Dr. King's principles but also U.S. anti-slavery laws - - though they were hoping to get paid something when they returned to China.

So let me ask why did China take so much pride in making an American Idol that will be honored yearly and even daily. 1 reason pride one worker stated 'Because we are working for 'national honor,' 'To bring glory to the Chinese people.' " China has a sense of national honor and glory, too, of course. Dr. King told a union crowd of striking sanitation workers in Memphis on the evening of April 3, 1968: "Like anybody, I would like to live a long life - - longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now.... I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight that we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land."

OK the ignorant me was disappointed that they chose to have this memorial statue made in China. Not to diminish the Chinese sculptor, I do believe there must be an African-American sculptor who would have done a fine job. Really, I am kind of dumbfounded by their choice.

Now the intelligent me look at Martin Luther King who started his influence among Afro-Americans in the South, his influence became worldwide. He became a positive leader to people from most countries, ethnic groups, cultures and nationalities. "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." Because