In 1963, Martin Luther King said he had a dream "That on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood." Many aspects of Martin Luther King's Dream may have come true, but some are, simply put, still a dream.

"The Dream" as Martin Luther King saw it was that all people were treated equally not based on race, religion, or sex. He dreamed that his "four children would not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." He waited for the day they could walk down the street and hold hands with a child of a different race. This part of King's dream has come true. Segregation has been outlawed. There are no more separate schools, restaurants, and bathrooms, for blacks and whites. It has also become more socially acceptable than when King was alive. According to the 1994 Information Please World Almanac, in the last 25 years interracial couples have quadrupled.

The majority of King's dream has failed to come true. History repeated itself when six days of rioting broke in Los Angeles over the Rodney King beating, a little less than thirty years after the Watts riots. This began when someone witnessed and videotaped police brutally beating a man.

Although there are affirmatives actions, there is still evidence of discrimination in the workplace. The Bureau of Labor Statistics states that there are more white people earning over $50,000 a year and there are more black Americans at the poverty level. In 1987 one in three blacks were living below poverty level. For employed blacks and whites in managerial type professions, 27.5 percent of whites held these jobs, and 16.8 percent of blacks. As another example of discrimination, in the south, a school superintendent said that black and white student could not go to the prom together as couples.

If Martin Luther King were alive today, the LA Riots may not have taken place and black Americans may have received equal treatment. If Martin Luther King was alive today, one suggestion he would have made may be to make job opportunities available equal for blacks, especially in higher paid positions.

In conclusion, Martin Luther King's Dream has become a reality, to an extent. Affirmative action and integration have helped, but what needs to be stopped are the many, and the not always good views that Americans take on each other.

Sources:
"I Have A Dream," Martin Luther King, Jr. 1963
US Census Statistics; 
Washington Post National Weekly Edition Feb 12-18; 
Department of commerce; 
Bureau of the Census; 
1994 Information Please World Almanac

By:
Melissa A.
Becky B.
Scott H.