I Have A Dream Lyrics
| Song | I Have A Dream |
| Artist | Martin Luther King, Jr. |
| Album | 英语演讲 |
| Download | Image LRC TXT |
| [00:01.030] | I am happy to join with you today |
| [00:05.730] | in what will go down in history |
| [00:09.560] | as the greatest demonstration for |
| [00:13.980] | freedom in the history of our nation |
| [00:18.650] | Five score years ago a great American |
| [00:32.580] | in whose symbolic shadow we stand |
| [00:35.090] | today signed the Emancipation Proclamation |
| [00:39.940] | This momentous decree came as a great |
| [00:48.000] | beacon light of hope to millions of |
| [00:50.440] | Negro slaves who had been seared |
| [00:55.170] | in the flames of withering injustice |
| [00:56.430] | It came as a |
| [01:00.730] | joyous daybreak to end the long night |
| [01:04.850] | of their captivity |
| [01:05.920] | But one hundred years later the |
| [01:11.290] | Negro still is not free |
| [01:16.830] | One hundred years later |
| [01:24.850] | the life of the Negro is still sadly |
| [01:27.370] | crippled by the manacles of segregation |
| [01:30.420] | and the chains of discrimination |
| [01:33.080] | One hundred years later |
| [01:35.830] | the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty |
| [01:41.460] | in the midst of a vast |
| [01:44.700] | ocean of material prosperity |
| [01:46.930] | One hundred years later |
| [01:48.910] | the Negro is still languished in the |
| [01:56.850] | corners of American society |
| [01:58.900] | and finds himself an exile in his own land |
| [02:03.180] | And so we've come |
| [02:06.250] | here today to dramatize a shameful condition |
| [02:09.860] | In a sense we've come to our nation's capital |
| [02:14.920] | to cash a check When the architects of our |
| [02:21.300] | republic wrote the magnificent words |
| [02:24.440] | of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence |
| [02:27.880] | they were signing a promissory note |
| [02:33.080] | to which every American was to fall heir |
| [02:37.320] | This note was a promise that all men |
| [02:41.160] | yes black men as well as white men |
| [02:46.390] | would be guaranteed the |
| [02:48.350] | unalienable Rights of Life Liberty |
| [02:50.860] | and the pursuit of Happiness |
| [02:54.420] | It is obvious today that |
| [02:58.130] | America has defaulted on this promissory note |
| [03:03.100] | insofar as her citizens of color are concerned |
| [03:07.060] | Instead of honoring this sacred obligation |
| [03:12.500] | America has given the Negro people a bad check |
| [03:17.850] | a check which has come back marked insufficient funds |
| [03:23.010] | But we refuse to believe that |
| [03:36.650] | the bank of justice is bankrupt |
| [03:39.700] | We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds |
| [03:46.470] | in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation |
| [03:49.330] | And so we've come to cash this check a check |
| [03:52.890] | that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom |
| [03:55.660] | and the security of justice |
| [03:59.130] | We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America |
| [04:14.720] | of the fierce urgency of Now |
| [04:17.840] | This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off |
| [04:26.680] | or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism |
| [04:30.030] | Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy |
| [04:39.910] | Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate |
| [04:46.840] | valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice |
| [04:52.180] | Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands |
| [04:59.050] | of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood |
| [05:03.180] | Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children |
| [05:10.950] | It would be fatal for the nation to overlook |
| [05:15.070] | the urgency of the moment |
| [05:19.420] | This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent |
| [05:24.260] | will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn |
| [05:29.960] | of freedom and equality Nineteen sixtythree |
| [05:34.050] | is not an end but a beginning |
| [05:37.030] | And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam |
| [05:41.480] | and will now be content will have a rude |
| [05:46.910] | awakening if the nation returns to business as usual |
| [05:49.640] | And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America |
| [06:09.280] | until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights |
| [06:13.410] | The whirlwinds(旋风） of revolt(反抗) |
| [06:17.440] | will continue to shake the foundations of our nation |
| [06:20.600] | until the bright day of justice emerges |
| [06:22.640] | But there is something that I must say to my people |
| [06:27.280] | who stand on the warm threshold which |
| [06:30.770] | leads into the palace of justice |
| [06:32.990] | In the process of gaining our rightful place |
| [06:38.200] | we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds |
| [06:42.740] | Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom |
| [06:48.310] | by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred |
| [06:52.130] | We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of |
| [07:05.550] | dignity and discipline |
| [07:07.630] | We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence |
| [07:13.080] | Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting |
| [07:19.900] | physical force with soul force |
| [07:23.280] | The marvelous new militancy |
| [07:26.040] | which has engulfed the Negro community |
| [07:29.420] | must not lead us to a distrust of all white people |
| [07:33.710] | for many of our white brothers as evidenced by their presence |
| [07:38.110] | here today have come to realize that |
| [07:40.760] | their destiny is tied up with our destiny And they have |
| [07:56.770] | come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom |
| [07:59.930] | We cannot walk alone |
| [08:01.010] | And as we walk we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead |
| [08:08.360] | We cannot turn back |
| [08:10.370] | There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights |
| [08:18.050] | When will you be satisfied |
| [08:21.020] | We can never be satisfied |
| [08:24.290] | as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality |
| [08:29.820] | We can never be satisfied |
| [08:32.750] | as long as our bodies heavy with the fatigue of travel |
| [08:38.090] | cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways |
| [08:42.900] | and the hotels of the cities |
| [08:44.460] | We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility |
| [08:56.220] | is from a smaller ghetto to a |
| [08:58.350] | larger one We can never be satisfied as long as our children |
| [09:01.880] | are stripped of their selfhood |
| [09:03.040] | and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating |
| [09:05.010] | For Whites Only We cannot be satisfied as |
| [09:06.850] | long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote |
| [09:08.140] | and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing |
| [09:10.260] | for which to vote |
| [09:11.150] | No no we are not satisfied and we will not be satisfied |
| [09:14.130] | until justice rolls |
| [09:16.110] | down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream 1 |
| [09:28.900] | |
| [09:29.900] | I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials |
| [09:38.040] | and tribulations |
| [09:40.420] | Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells |
| [09:45.230] | And some of you have come from areas |
| [09:49.180] | where your quest quest |
| [09:50.970] | for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and |
| [09:55.570] | staggered by the winds of police brutality |
| [09:58.810] | You have been the veterans of creative suffering |
| [10:03.760] | Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive |
| [10:11.100] | Go back to Mississippi |
| [10:15.230] | go back to Alabama go back to South Carolina |
| [10:20.470] | go back to Georgia go back to Louisiana go |
| [10:23.660] | back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities |
| [10:28.630] | knowing that somehow this situation can |
| [10:31.760] | and will be changed |
| [10:32.760] | Let us not wallow in the valley of despair |
| [10:37.980] | I say to you today my friends |
| [10:40.540] | And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow |
| [10:54.150] | I still have a dream |
| [10:59.450] | It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream |
| [11:03.810] | I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up |
| [11:13.220] | and live out the true meaning of its creed |
| [11:19.930] | We hold these truths to be selfevident |
| [11:22.370] | that all men are created equal |
| [11:24.010] | I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia |
| [11:39.180] | the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners |
| [11:44.620] | will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood |
| [11:50.180] | I have a dream that one day |
| [11:54.750] | even the state of Mississippi |
| [11:57.840] | a state sweltering with the heat of injustice |
| [12:00.700] | sweltering with the heat of oppression |
| [12:07.690] | will be transformed into an oasis of freedom |
| [12:11.570] | I have a dream |
| [12:14.500] | that my four little children |
| [12:19.160] | will one day live in a nation |
| [12:22.580] | where they will not be and justice |
| [12:24.660] | judged by the color of their skin |
| [12:26.510] | but by the content of their character |
| [12:27.890] | I have a dream today! |
| [12:29.170] | I have a dream that one day |
| [12:40.880] | down in Alabama with its vicious racists |
| [12:46.870] | with its governor having his lips |
| [12:53.370] | dripping with the words of interposition and nullification |
| [12:55.200] | one day right there in Alabama |
| [12:57.550] | little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white |
| [13:02.730] | boys and white girls as sisters and brothers |
| [13:05.320] | I have a dream today!I have a dream that one day |
| [13:18.090] | every valley shall be exalted and every hill and mountain shall |
| [13:22.230] | be made low the rough places will be made plain |
| [13:25.130] | and the crooked places will be made |
| [13:26.470] | straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed |
| [13:29.340] | and all flesh shall see it together 2 |
| [13:33.140] | This is our hope and this is the faith that I go back to the South with |
| [13:38.990] | With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair |
| [13:43.040] | a stone of hope |
| [13:44.980] | With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords |
| [13:50.990] | of our nation into a beautiful |
| [13:53.310] | symphony of brotherhood |
| [13:55.200] | With this faith we will be able to work together to pray together |
| [13:59.240] | to struggle together to go to jail together |
| [14:03.730] | to stand up for freedom together knowing that we |
| [14:06.470] | will be free one day |
| [14:10.530] | And this will be the day this |
| [14:14.040] | will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing |
| [14:19.210] | with new meaning |
| [14:20.150] | My country 'tis of thee sweet land of liberty of thee I sing |
| [14:26.350] | Land where my fathers died land of the Pilgrim's pride |
| [14:29.930] | From every mountainside let freedom ring! |
| [14:34.740] | And if America is to be a great nation |
| [14:37.670] | this must become true |
| [14:38.690] | And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire |
| [14:45.000] | Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York |
| [14:48.680] | Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of |
| [14:52.550] | Pennsylvania |
| [14:53.430] | Let freedom ring from the snowcapped |
| [14:56.760] | Rockies of Colorado |
| [14:57.890] | Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California |
| [15:03.780] | But not only that |
| [15:06.470] | Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia |
| [15:08.400] | Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee |
| [15:12.510] | Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi |
| [15:19.300] | From every mountainside let freedom ring And when this happens |
| [15:25.570] | when we allow freedom ring when we let it ring from every village |
| [15:33.860] | and every hamlet from every state and every city |
| [15:38.520] | we will be able to speed up that day when |
| [15:42.730] | all of God's children black men and white men |
| [15:46.920] | Jews and Gentiles Protestants and Catholics |
| [15:49.590] | will be able to join hands and sing in the words |
| [15:53.310] | of the old Negro spiritual |
| [15:54.240] | Free at last! Free at last! |
| [15:56.810] | Thank God Almighty we are free at last!3 |
| [00:01.030] | I am happy to join with you today |
| [00:05.730] | in what will go down in history |
| [00:09.560] | as the greatest demonstration for |
| [00:13.980] | freedom in the history of our nation |
| [00:18.650] | Five score years ago a great American |
| [00:32.580] | in whose symbolic shadow we stand |
| [00:35.090] | today signed the Emancipation Proclamation |
| [00:39.940] | This momentous decree came as a great |
| [00:48.000] | beacon light of hope to millions of |
| [00:50.440] | Negro slaves who had been seared |
| [00:55.170] | in the flames of withering injustice |
| [00:56.430] | It came as a |
| [01:00.730] | joyous daybreak to end the long night |
| [01:04.850] | of their captivity |
| [01:05.920] | But one hundred years later the |
| [01:11.290] | Negro still is not free |
| [01:16.830] | One hundred years later |
| [01:24.850] | the life of the Negro is still sadly |
| [01:27.370] | crippled by the manacles of segregation |
| [01:30.420] | and the chains of discrimination |
| [01:33.080] | One hundred years later |
| [01:35.830] | the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty |
| [01:41.460] | in the midst of a vast |
| [01:44.700] | ocean of material prosperity |
| [01:46.930] | One hundred years later |
| [01:48.910] | the Negro is still languished in the |
| [01:56.850] | corners of American society |
| [01:58.900] | and finds himself an exile in his own land |
| [02:03.180] | And so we' ve come |
| [02:06.250] | here today to dramatize a shameful condition |
| [02:09.860] | In a sense we' ve come to our nation' s capital |
| [02:14.920] | to cash a check When the architects of our |
| [02:21.300] | republic wrote the magnificent words |
| [02:24.440] | of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence |
| [02:27.880] | they were signing a promissory note |
| [02:33.080] | to which every American was to fall heir |
| [02:37.320] | This note was a promise that all men |
| [02:41.160] | yes black men as well as white men |
| [02:46.390] | would be guaranteed the |
| [02:48.350] | unalienable Rights of Life Liberty |
| [02:50.860] | and the pursuit of Happiness |
| [02:54.420] | It is obvious today that |
| [02:58.130] | America has defaulted on this promissory note |
| [03:03.100] | insofar as her citizens of color are concerned |
| [03:07.060] | Instead of honoring this sacred obligation |
| [03:12.500] | America has given the Negro people a bad check |
| [03:17.850] | a check which has come back marked insufficient funds |
| [03:23.010] | But we refuse to believe that |
| [03:36.650] | the bank of justice is bankrupt |
| [03:39.700] | We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds |
| [03:46.470] | in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation |
| [03:49.330] | And so we' ve come to cash this check a check |
| [03:52.890] | that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom |
| [03:55.660] | and the security of justice |
| [03:59.130] | We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America |
| [04:14.720] | of the fierce urgency of Now |
| [04:17.840] | This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off |
| [04:26.680] | or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism |
| [04:30.030] | Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy |
| [04:39.910] | Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate |
| [04:46.840] | valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice |
| [04:52.180] | Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands |
| [04:59.050] | of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood |
| [05:03.180] | Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God' s children |
| [05:10.950] | It would be fatal for the nation to overlook |
| [05:15.070] | the urgency of the moment |
| [05:19.420] | This sweltering summer of the Negro' s legitimate discontent |
| [05:24.260] | will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn |
| [05:29.960] | of freedom and equality Nineteen sixtythree |
| [05:34.050] | is not an end but a beginning |
| [05:37.030] | And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam |
| [05:41.480] | and will now be content will have a rude |
| [05:46.910] | awakening if the nation returns to business as usual |
| [05:49.640] | And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America |
| [06:09.280] | until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights |
| [06:13.410] | The whirlwinds xuan feng of revolt fan kang |
| [06:17.440] | will continue to shake the foundations of our nation |
| [06:20.600] | until the bright day of justice emerges |
| [06:22.640] | But there is something that I must say to my people |
| [06:27.280] | who stand on the warm threshold which |
| [06:30.770] | leads into the palace of justice |
| [06:32.990] | In the process of gaining our rightful place |
| [06:38.200] | we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds |
| [06:42.740] | Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom |
| [06:48.310] | by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred |
| [06:52.130] | We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of |
| [07:05.550] | dignity and discipline |
| [07:07.630] | We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence |
| [07:13.080] | Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting |
| [07:19.900] | physical force with soul force |
| [07:23.280] | The marvelous new militancy |
| [07:26.040] | which has engulfed the Negro community |
| [07:29.420] | must not lead us to a distrust of all white people |
| [07:33.710] | for many of our white brothers as evidenced by their presence |
| [07:38.110] | here today have come to realize that |
| [07:40.760] | their destiny is tied up with our destiny And they have |
| [07:56.770] | come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom |
| [07:59.930] | We cannot walk alone |
| [08:01.010] | And as we walk we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead |
| [08:08.360] | We cannot turn back |
| [08:10.370] | There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights |
| [08:18.050] | When will you be satisfied |
| [08:21.020] | We can never be satisfied |
| [08:24.290] | as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality |
| [08:29.820] | We can never be satisfied |
| [08:32.750] | as long as our bodies heavy with the fatigue of travel |
| [08:38.090] | cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways |
| [08:42.900] | and the hotels of the cities |
| [08:44.460] | We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro' s basic mobility |
| [08:56.220] | is from a smaller ghetto to a |
| [08:58.350] | larger one We can never be satisfied as long as our children |
| [09:01.880] | are stripped of their selfhood |
| [09:03.040] | and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating |
| [09:05.010] | For Whites Only We cannot be satisfied as |
| [09:06.850] | long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote |
| [09:08.140] | and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing |
| [09:10.260] | for which to vote |
| [09:11.150] | No no we are not satisfied and we will not be satisfied |
| [09:14.130] | until justice rolls |
| [09:16.110] | down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream 1 |
| [09:28.900] | |
| [09:29.900] | I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials |
| [09:38.040] | and tribulations |
| [09:40.420] | Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells |
| [09:45.230] | And some of you have come from areas |
| [09:49.180] | where your quest quest |
| [09:50.970] | for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and |
| [09:55.570] | staggered by the winds of police brutality |
| [09:58.810] | You have been the veterans of creative suffering |
| [10:03.760] | Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive |
| [10:11.100] | Go back to Mississippi |
| [10:15.230] | go back to Alabama go back to South Carolina |
| [10:20.470] | go back to Georgia go back to Louisiana go |
| [10:23.660] | back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities |
| [10:28.630] | knowing that somehow this situation can |
| [10:31.760] | and will be changed |
| [10:32.760] | Let us not wallow in the valley of despair |
| [10:37.980] | I say to you today my friends |
| [10:40.540] | And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow |
| [10:54.150] | I still have a dream |
| [10:59.450] | It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream |
| [11:03.810] | I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up |
| [11:13.220] | and live out the true meaning of its creed |
| [11:19.930] | We hold these truths to be selfevident |
| [11:22.370] | that all men are created equal |
| [11:24.010] | I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia |
| [11:39.180] | the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners |
| [11:44.620] | will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood |
| [11:50.180] | I have a dream that one day |
| [11:54.750] | even the state of Mississippi |
| [11:57.840] | a state sweltering with the heat of injustice |
| [12:00.700] | sweltering with the heat of oppression |
| [12:07.690] | will be transformed into an oasis of freedom |
| [12:11.570] | I have a dream |
| [12:14.500] | that my four little children |
| [12:19.160] | will one day live in a nation |
| [12:22.580] | where they will not be and justice |
| [12:24.660] | judged by the color of their skin |
| [12:26.510] | but by the content of their character |
| [12:27.890] | I have a dream today! |
| [12:29.170] | I have a dream that one day |
| [12:40.880] | down in Alabama with its vicious racists |
| [12:46.870] | with its governor having his lips |
| [12:53.370] | dripping with the words of interposition and nullification |
| [12:55.200] | one day right there in Alabama |
| [12:57.550] | little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white |
| [13:02.730] | boys and white girls as sisters and brothers |
| [13:05.320] | I have a dream today! I have a dream that one day |
| [13:18.090] | every valley shall be exalted and every hill and mountain shall |
| [13:22.230] | be made low the rough places will be made plain |
| [13:25.130] | and the crooked places will be made |
| [13:26.470] | straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed |
| [13:29.340] | and all flesh shall see it together 2 |
| [13:33.140] | This is our hope and this is the faith that I go back to the South with |
| [13:38.990] | With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair |
| [13:43.040] | a stone of hope |
| [13:44.980] | With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords |
| [13:50.990] | of our nation into a beautiful |
| [13:53.310] | symphony of brotherhood |
| [13:55.200] | With this faith we will be able to work together to pray together |
| [13:59.240] | to struggle together to go to jail together |
| [14:03.730] | to stand up for freedom together knowing that we |
| [14:06.470] | will be free one day |
| [14:10.530] | And this will be the day this |
| [14:14.040] | will be the day when all of God' s children will be able to sing |
| [14:19.210] | with new meaning |
| [14:20.150] | My country ' tis of thee sweet land of liberty of thee I sing |
| [14:26.350] | Land where my fathers died land of the Pilgrim' s pride |
| [14:29.930] | From every mountainside let freedom ring! |
| [14:34.740] | And if America is to be a great nation |
| [14:37.670] | this must become true |
| [14:38.690] | And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire |
| [14:45.000] | Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York |
| [14:48.680] | Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of |
| [14:52.550] | Pennsylvania |
| [14:53.430] | Let freedom ring from the snowcapped |
| [14:56.760] | Rockies of Colorado |
| [14:57.890] | Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California |
| [15:03.780] | But not only that |
| [15:06.470] | Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia |
| [15:08.400] | Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee |
| [15:12.510] | Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi |
| [15:19.300] | From every mountainside let freedom ring And when this happens |
| [15:25.570] | when we allow freedom ring when we let it ring from every village |
| [15:33.860] | and every hamlet from every state and every city |
| [15:38.520] | we will be able to speed up that day when |
| [15:42.730] | all of God' s children black men and white men |
| [15:46.920] | Jews and Gentiles Protestants and Catholics |
| [15:49.590] | will be able to join hands and sing in the words |
| [15:53.310] | of the old Negro spiritual |
| [15:54.240] | Free at last! Free at last! |
| [15:56.810] | Thank God Almighty we are free at last! 3 |
| [00:01.030] | I am happy to join with you today |
| [00:05.730] | in what will go down in history |
| [00:09.560] | as the greatest demonstration for |
| [00:13.980] | freedom in the history of our nation |
| [00:18.650] | Five score years ago a great American |
| [00:32.580] | in whose symbolic shadow we stand |
| [00:35.090] | today signed the Emancipation Proclamation |
| [00:39.940] | This momentous decree came as a great |
| [00:48.000] | beacon light of hope to millions of |
| [00:50.440] | Negro slaves who had been seared |
| [00:55.170] | in the flames of withering injustice |
| [00:56.430] | It came as a |
| [01:00.730] | joyous daybreak to end the long night |
| [01:04.850] | of their captivity |
| [01:05.920] | But one hundred years later the |
| [01:11.290] | Negro still is not free |
| [01:16.830] | One hundred years later |
| [01:24.850] | the life of the Negro is still sadly |
| [01:27.370] | crippled by the manacles of segregation |
| [01:30.420] | and the chains of discrimination |
| [01:33.080] | One hundred years later |
| [01:35.830] | the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty |
| [01:41.460] | in the midst of a vast |
| [01:44.700] | ocean of material prosperity |
| [01:46.930] | One hundred years later |
| [01:48.910] | the Negro is still languished in the |
| [01:56.850] | corners of American society |
| [01:58.900] | and finds himself an exile in his own land |
| [02:03.180] | And so we' ve come |
| [02:06.250] | here today to dramatize a shameful condition |
| [02:09.860] | In a sense we' ve come to our nation' s capital |
| [02:14.920] | to cash a check When the architects of our |
| [02:21.300] | republic wrote the magnificent words |
| [02:24.440] | of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence |
| [02:27.880] | they were signing a promissory note |
| [02:33.080] | to which every American was to fall heir |
| [02:37.320] | This note was a promise that all men |
| [02:41.160] | yes black men as well as white men |
| [02:46.390] | would be guaranteed the |
| [02:48.350] | unalienable Rights of Life Liberty |
| [02:50.860] | and the pursuit of Happiness |
| [02:54.420] | It is obvious today that |
| [02:58.130] | America has defaulted on this promissory note |
| [03:03.100] | insofar as her citizens of color are concerned |
| [03:07.060] | Instead of honoring this sacred obligation |
| [03:12.500] | America has given the Negro people a bad check |
| [03:17.850] | a check which has come back marked insufficient funds |
| [03:23.010] | But we refuse to believe that |
| [03:36.650] | the bank of justice is bankrupt |
| [03:39.700] | We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds |
| [03:46.470] | in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation |
| [03:49.330] | And so we' ve come to cash this check a check |
| [03:52.890] | that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom |
| [03:55.660] | and the security of justice |
| [03:59.130] | We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America |
| [04:14.720] | of the fierce urgency of Now |
| [04:17.840] | This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off |
| [04:26.680] | or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism |
| [04:30.030] | Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy |
| [04:39.910] | Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate |
| [04:46.840] | valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice |
| [04:52.180] | Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands |
| [04:59.050] | of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood |
| [05:03.180] | Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God' s children |
| [05:10.950] | It would be fatal for the nation to overlook |
| [05:15.070] | the urgency of the moment |
| [05:19.420] | This sweltering summer of the Negro' s legitimate discontent |
| [05:24.260] | will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn |
| [05:29.960] | of freedom and equality Nineteen sixtythree |
| [05:34.050] | is not an end but a beginning |
| [05:37.030] | And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam |
| [05:41.480] | and will now be content will have a rude |
| [05:46.910] | awakening if the nation returns to business as usual |
| [05:49.640] | And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America |
| [06:09.280] | until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights |
| [06:13.410] | The whirlwinds xuàn fēng of revolt fǎn kàng |
| [06:17.440] | will continue to shake the foundations of our nation |
| [06:20.600] | until the bright day of justice emerges |
| [06:22.640] | But there is something that I must say to my people |
| [06:27.280] | who stand on the warm threshold which |
| [06:30.770] | leads into the palace of justice |
| [06:32.990] | In the process of gaining our rightful place |
| [06:38.200] | we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds |
| [06:42.740] | Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom |
| [06:48.310] | by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred |
| [06:52.130] | We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of |
| [07:05.550] | dignity and discipline |
| [07:07.630] | We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence |
| [07:13.080] | Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting |
| [07:19.900] | physical force with soul force |
| [07:23.280] | The marvelous new militancy |
| [07:26.040] | which has engulfed the Negro community |
| [07:29.420] | must not lead us to a distrust of all white people |
| [07:33.710] | for many of our white brothers as evidenced by their presence |
| [07:38.110] | here today have come to realize that |
| [07:40.760] | their destiny is tied up with our destiny And they have |
| [07:56.770] | come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom |
| [07:59.930] | We cannot walk alone |
| [08:01.010] | And as we walk we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead |
| [08:08.360] | We cannot turn back |
| [08:10.370] | There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights |
| [08:18.050] | When will you be satisfied |
| [08:21.020] | We can never be satisfied |
| [08:24.290] | as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality |
| [08:29.820] | We can never be satisfied |
| [08:32.750] | as long as our bodies heavy with the fatigue of travel |
| [08:38.090] | cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways |
| [08:42.900] | and the hotels of the cities |
| [08:44.460] | We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro' s basic mobility |
| [08:56.220] | is from a smaller ghetto to a |
| [08:58.350] | larger one We can never be satisfied as long as our children |
| [09:01.880] | are stripped of their selfhood |
| [09:03.040] | and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating |
| [09:05.010] | For Whites Only We cannot be satisfied as |
| [09:06.850] | long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote |
| [09:08.140] | and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing |
| [09:10.260] | for which to vote |
| [09:11.150] | No no we are not satisfied and we will not be satisfied |
| [09:14.130] | until justice rolls |
| [09:16.110] | down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream 1 |
| [09:28.900] | |
| [09:29.900] | I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials |
| [09:38.040] | and tribulations |
| [09:40.420] | Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells |
| [09:45.230] | And some of you have come from areas |
| [09:49.180] | where your quest quest |
| [09:50.970] | for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and |
| [09:55.570] | staggered by the winds of police brutality |
| [09:58.810] | You have been the veterans of creative suffering |
| [10:03.760] | Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive |
| [10:11.100] | Go back to Mississippi |
| [10:15.230] | go back to Alabama go back to South Carolina |
| [10:20.470] | go back to Georgia go back to Louisiana go |
| [10:23.660] | back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities |
| [10:28.630] | knowing that somehow this situation can |
| [10:31.760] | and will be changed |
| [10:32.760] | Let us not wallow in the valley of despair |
| [10:37.980] | I say to you today my friends |
| [10:40.540] | And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow |
| [10:54.150] | I still have a dream |
| [10:59.450] | It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream |
| [11:03.810] | I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up |
| [11:13.220] | and live out the true meaning of its creed |
| [11:19.930] | We hold these truths to be selfevident |
| [11:22.370] | that all men are created equal |
| [11:24.010] | I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia |
| [11:39.180] | the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners |
| [11:44.620] | will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood |
| [11:50.180] | I have a dream that one day |
| [11:54.750] | even the state of Mississippi |
| [11:57.840] | a state sweltering with the heat of injustice |
| [12:00.700] | sweltering with the heat of oppression |
| [12:07.690] | will be transformed into an oasis of freedom |
| [12:11.570] | I have a dream |
| [12:14.500] | that my four little children |
| [12:19.160] | will one day live in a nation |
| [12:22.580] | where they will not be and justice |
| [12:24.660] | judged by the color of their skin |
| [12:26.510] | but by the content of their character |
| [12:27.890] | I have a dream today! |
| [12:29.170] | I have a dream that one day |
| [12:40.880] | down in Alabama with its vicious racists |
| [12:46.870] | with its governor having his lips |
| [12:53.370] | dripping with the words of interposition and nullification |
| [12:55.200] | one day right there in Alabama |
| [12:57.550] | little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white |
| [13:02.730] | boys and white girls as sisters and brothers |
| [13:05.320] | I have a dream today! I have a dream that one day |
| [13:18.090] | every valley shall be exalted and every hill and mountain shall |
| [13:22.230] | be made low the rough places will be made plain |
| [13:25.130] | and the crooked places will be made |
| [13:26.470] | straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed |
| [13:29.340] | and all flesh shall see it together 2 |
| [13:33.140] | This is our hope and this is the faith that I go back to the South with |
| [13:38.990] | With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair |
| [13:43.040] | a stone of hope |
| [13:44.980] | With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords |
| [13:50.990] | of our nation into a beautiful |
| [13:53.310] | symphony of brotherhood |
| [13:55.200] | With this faith we will be able to work together to pray together |
| [13:59.240] | to struggle together to go to jail together |
| [14:03.730] | to stand up for freedom together knowing that we |
| [14:06.470] | will be free one day |
| [14:10.530] | And this will be the day this |
| [14:14.040] | will be the day when all of God' s children will be able to sing |
| [14:19.210] | with new meaning |
| [14:20.150] | My country ' tis of thee sweet land of liberty of thee I sing |
| [14:26.350] | Land where my fathers died land of the Pilgrim' s pride |
| [14:29.930] | From every mountainside let freedom ring! |
| [14:34.740] | And if America is to be a great nation |
| [14:37.670] | this must become true |
| [14:38.690] | And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire |
| [14:45.000] | Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York |
| [14:48.680] | Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of |
| [14:52.550] | Pennsylvania |
| [14:53.430] | Let freedom ring from the snowcapped |
| [14:56.760] | Rockies of Colorado |
| [14:57.890] | Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California |
| [15:03.780] | But not only that |
| [15:06.470] | Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia |
| [15:08.400] | Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee |
| [15:12.510] | Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi |
| [15:19.300] | From every mountainside let freedom ring And when this happens |
| [15:25.570] | when we allow freedom ring when we let it ring from every village |
| [15:33.860] | and every hamlet from every state and every city |
| [15:38.520] | we will be able to speed up that day when |
| [15:42.730] | all of God' s children black men and white men |
| [15:46.920] | Jews and Gentiles Protestants and Catholics |
| [15:49.590] | will be able to join hands and sing in the words |
| [15:53.310] | of the old Negro spiritual |
| [15:54.240] | Free at last! Free at last! |
| [15:56.810] | Thank God Almighty we are free at last! 3 |
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