Obama doesn't have a dream
Though I was unavailable to attend the 50th anniversary commemoration of the 1963 march on Washington D.C. and Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech, I did make the point of listening to President Obama's speech delivered at the event, a transcript of which can be found HERE . What follows are my thoughts on the speech and reactions to some of the topics raised. In the opening, Obama acknowledges that progress has been achieved in civil rights. He names several important historical figures who contributed to that progress and reminds us that to say otherwise would be to say their work was in vain. That's more acknowledgement of progress than we are generally accustomed to. Of course, being black and president forces a few admissions. Still, it puts the lie to the perennial detractors who claim the President speaks as though we are still in the days of dogs and fire hoses. Next, Obama spends some time giving a history lesson on the march of 50 years ago. I