Dreams

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Less than a month before I was born, Martin Luther King, Junior gave a speech in Washington, D.C. that
you may have heard of, the I have a Dream speech.

It's considered a pivotal point in United States history for civil rights and equality. 

King's speech in 1963 cited the Emancipation Proclamation 100 years earlier, as being, "a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity." (American Rhetoric.com/I have a dream)

However, that freedom hadn't developed as he and others hoped, and he called on the United States to deliver on the promises in the Constitution to deliver to Black men and women their unalienable rights of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

King called on America to recognize the urgency of the moment. 

Here is an item from USA Today August 20, 2025

WASHINGTON − President Donald Trump said the Smithsonian museums in Washington are too fixated on "how bad slavery was" and other negative aspects of United States history as he promised to take aim at the "WOKE" elements inside them.

Trump's remarks, made in an Aug. 19 social media post on Truth Social, came after he last week launched a review of the Smithsonian Institution and its 21 museums to remove "divisive or partisan" elements and determine whether its materials conformed to the Trump administration's views on teaching history.

"The Museums throughout Washington, but all over the Country are, essentially, the last remaining segment of 'WOKE,' " Trump said in his post. "The Smithsonian is OUT OF CONTROL, where everything discussed is how horrible our Country is, how bad Slavery was, and how unaccomplished the downtrodden have been."

Trump added that the Smithsonian museums contain "Nothing about Success, nothing about Brightness, nothing about the Future."

"We are not going to allow this to happen," he said, comparing his review of the Smithsonian Institution to his administration's work to root out diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives from colleges and universities. "This Country cannot be WOKE, because WOKE IS BROKE. We have the 'HOTTEST' Country in the World, and we want people to talk about it, including in our Museums."

Federal funds make up about 62% of the annual budget of the Smithsonian, which is a public-private partnership established by Congress.

The National Museum of African American History and Culture, which the Smithsonian opened in 2016, has comprehensive exhibits on the history of slavery in the United States beginning with the transatlantic slave trade.

Trump's review is set to initially focus on eight Smithsonian museums. The list includes the National Museum of African American History and Culture, as well as the National Museum of American History; National Museum of Natural History; National Museum of the American Indian; National Air and Space Museum; Smithsonian American Art Museum; the National Portrait Gallery; and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

White House officials announced the review in an Aug. 12 letter to Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch III, writing that the initiative aims to "ensure alignment with the President's directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions."

The letter stated that within 120 days, the Smithsonian is expected to begin making "content corrections where necessary, replacing divisive or ideologically driven language with unifying, historically accurate, and constructive descriptions." 

The review will focus on Smithsonian exhibits, along with the process for creating them. It is expected to be completed early next year, which is the 250th anniversary of the nation's founding.

In a statement last week on the White House review, the Smithsonian said it would "continue to collaborate constructively with the White House."

"The Smithsonian’s work is grounded in a deep commitment to scholarly excellence, rigorous research, and the accurate, factual presentation of history. We are reviewing the letter with this commitment in mind," the statement reads.

Contributing: Zac Anderson

Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: President Trump complains 'woke' Smithsonian is too focused on 'how bad slavery was'

I'm not sure a Caucasian should be judging how bad slavery was, considering that most of the slave-owners were white. Despite access to volume upon volume of history books, there seem to more people denying what actually happened because they believe if they keep on yelling, others will stop fighting them. 

While there has been progress, it seems obvious that, as a nation we aren't at a place where racial equality and opportunities are routinely successful and the future isn't as bright as it might be.

Martin Luther King Junior's words aspire to a better time and better days:

And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day 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.

This is our hope, and 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.

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.

And 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.

But 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, and 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!

 (excerpts of Martin Luther King, Jr. I have a Dream, August 28, 1963 Washington D.C. (printed online at American Rhetoric.com/I have a dream speech)