What Happens in "I Have a Dream" speech?

Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his famous "I Have A Dream" speech
on August 28, 1963. One of its most powerful lines reads, "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.”

 Knowing that three different news stations would be in attendance that

day, King wrote a speech in advance. Moved by the emotion of the
crowd, however, he went off script and began preaching from the heart.

 King references the beliefs of the Founding Fathers, who declared that
America would be a land of freedom where all men are created equal.

 Throughout the speech, King repeats the phrases "I have a dream" and
"with this faith" in his dream, using the rhetorical strategy of repetition to
drive home his point.

Summary
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King begins his “I Have a Dream” speech by declaring that this occasion
will be remembered as the “greatest demonstration for freedom” in
United States history. He then evokes Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg
Address and references the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, a
document that gave hope of a better future to many African Americans.
Despite the abolition of slavery and the time that has since passed, black
people in America are still not free; the aftershocks of slavery are still felt
through segregation and discrimination in the United States.

King refers next to the signing of the Declaration of Independence,

describing the document as a “promissory note” whose promise has not
been fulfilled for African Americans. Therefore, King says he has come
to Washington to chide the United States for “defaulting” on this promise
in regard to black Americans who have not been granted life, liberty, and
the pursuit of happiness. The bank of justice, King says, surely still has
money in it, and there is a debt to be paid to black Americans.

King goes on to declare that the time has come to “make justice a
reality” for all in the United States. He describes the situation as “urgent,”
stating that the growing discontent among black Americans will not
dissipate until equality is won. There will not be peace in America until
African Americans are granted their rights as American citizens. Though
the situation is urgent, King stresses that his fellow African American
protesters should neither resort to violence nor blame all white people,
for there are white civil rights protesters among them in the audience,
fighting alongside them. The struggle for equality must continue until
police brutality is no longer a concern for African Americans, hotels no
longer turn them away, ghettos are not their only option, and voting
rights are universal—until justice is served.

King acknowledges that protesting has been difficult for many. Some of
those present have recently been in prison or have suffered other
persecutions. He promises that their struggle will be rewarded and
encourages his listeners to return to their home states filled with new
hope. King famously declares, “I have a dream,” and describes his hope
for a future America where blacks and whites will sit and eat together. It
is a world in which children will no longer be judged by their skin color
and where black and white alike will join hands. King calls upon his
listeners to look to this vision of America to give them hope to keep
fighting and asserts that when freedom is allowed to “ring” from every
part of the nation, the United States will be what it should have always
been, and justice will be achieved.
What are the words to I Have a Dream Speech?
I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and
tomorrow, I still have a 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."

Why was the I Have A Dream speech so important?

This speech was important in several ways: It brought even greater attention to the
Civil Rights Movement, which had been going on for many years. ... After this speech,
the name Martin Luther King was known to many more people than before. It made
Congress move faster in passing the Civil Rights Act.

What was the main message of the I Have a Dream Speech?

The “I Have a Dream” speech let people see each other differently, and did not judge
each other because of their skin color. The speech " I Have a Dream" By Martin Luther
King, main idea is about the Negros getting their freedom. Also I found this main
idea because of all of the figurative language.