Excerpts

Martin Luther King's Dream This is the story of one of our greatest spokesmen for freedom, a man who reminded Americans that all of God's children are created equal. Martin Luther King, Jr., liked going to church when he was a boy in Atlanta, Georgia. His father was the minister there, and his mother led the choir. Martin's favorite hymn was called "I Want to Be More and More Like Jesus." He loved singing it while his mother played the organ. And he loved listening to the big words his father used when he preached from behind the pulpit. "When I grow up, I'm going to get some big words, too," he used to say. Home was just three blocks away in a big wooden house on Auburn Avenue. Martin felt happy and safe there. Every morning began with a prayer, and every evening the family was together for supper. Around the dinner table, Mr. and Mrs. King taught their children the important lessons of life. Above all, they taught Martin and his brother and sister to do unto others as you would have them do unto you. But not everyone lived according to that rule, as Martin found out when he turned six. That was the year he started school. Two of Martin's good friends were white boys. Martin went to one school where all the children were black, and his two friends went to another school where all the boys and girls were white. After school, Martin ran to see his friends. But when he knocked on their doors, their mothers said his friends could not come out and play with Martin anymore. "But why?" asked Martin. "Because we are white, and you are black," came the answer. Martin ran home to ask his mother why he could not play with his friends. She took him into her lap and told him how black people had once been slaves, and how Abraham Lincoln had freed the slaves in the Civil War. But in many ways black people still were not free, she explained, because there were laws to keep them from doing all the things white people could do. In the South, black people could not go to the same schools as white people. They could not eat at the same restaurants. Black children could not play in the parks white children played in or drink from the same water fountains. Blacks were kept out of many jobs, and in many places they were not given the chance to vote on election day. It was hard for Martin to understand how there could be such laws. But he knew they were wrong. He told himself that someday he would try to change them. Martin studied hard as he grew up. He liked words and books and the great ideas they could teach. At college, he decided to become a minister like his father and grandfather. That way he could help people be kind and fair toward each other, just as Jesus wanted. Night after night, he pored over the works of great thinkers and writers, soaking up their wisdom, and seeking answers about how to serve God and his fellow man. After school, Martin moved to Montgomery, Alabama, with his new wife, Coretta, whom he had met in college. There Martin began his career as a preacher at a Baptist church, and there he found his chance to help change the laws that kept black and white people apart. When black people in Montgomery wanted to ride a bus, they had to sit in the back, in a special section. And if the bus was full, the law said that the black riders must stand and give their seats to white people. One day a black woman named Rosa Parks was riding on a bus. The bus grew crowded, and the driver told her to give her seat to a white man. But Rosa Parks was tired from working all day. And she was tired of being pushed around. She refused to give up her seat. The next thing she knew, she was under arrest. Word of what happened spread quickly. All the black people of Montgomery were tired of being pushed around. So Reverend King and the other black leaders came up with a daring plan. They asked the city's black people to stop riding the buses. And they began to speak out against the kind of evil laws that forced blacks to the back of the bus. It was a brave and dangerous stand. But Reverend King and his friends would not be frightened out of doing what was right. They stayed off the buses until the blacks could ride side by side with whites. But there were still many other laws in many cities and states which treated black people unfairly. So Reverend King set about trying to change them, too. Across the South, he gave speeches saying that in the eyes of the law, all people should be treated as equals. He spoke in a rich, deep voice that made people stop and listen. Now he put to use all of those beautiful, powerful words he had read and studied. He used them to make people think about how they should treat one another. He told them he was speaking out because he loved America deeply and wanted all of its citizens to be free. Again and again, Reverend King paid a heavy price. He received ugly letters in the mail and threatening phone calls in the middle of the night. Many times he was thrown into dark, lonely jails for giving his speeches and leading protests. Sometimes his heart sank, and he grew discouraged. But whenever he thought of quitting, it seemed as though he could hear the voice of Jesus saying, "Stand up for what is right. Stand up for truth. I will be with you." One summer day in 1963, thousands and thousands of Americans gathered in Washington, D.C. Black and white people came from all over the country to call for a nation where the laws would treat all people as equals. They marched peacefully to the Lincoln Memorial, where Reverend King stood before them and spoke. "I have a dream," he told the great crowd. "It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today." As the nation listened to Reverend King, people realized that the words he spoke were what America is all about: freedom and equality for all men and women, no matter the color of their skin. They realized that Americans need to live together, not apart. Across the country, more and more people both black and white joined Reverend King in his cause. As time passed, minds began to change. And slowly the laws began to change, too. Then something tragic happened. In 1968, Reverend King traveled to Memphis, Tennessee, to help some workers get more pay. He was standing on his motel balcony, talking to some friends, when a gunshot sounded. Reverend King collapsed on the floor. In one brief instant, the man who helped millions of Americans find hope and courage was taken away, and the country mourned. But Reverend King's dream did not die. Instead, people drew strength from his example and his words. Remembering his bravery, black and white people kept striving to make our country a place where everyone can work together, learn together, and pray together. They labor still to make it a nation where people of all races can sit down at the table of brotherhood together. Today all of us want the America of Reverend King's dream -- an America where freedom rings for every citizen all across the land. Copyright © 1998 by William J. Bennett Excerpted from The Children's Book of America by William J. Bennett All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.