I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up

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."

Extraits du discours

"There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating: "For Whites Only." We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream.""

"Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children."

"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.
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
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.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."
This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with."

Le contexte

Nous sommes le 28 août 1963. Le mouvement noir pour les droits civiques avait commencé à être connu du public en particulier avec le geste de Rosa Parks le 1er décembre 1955 qui refusa de céder sa place dans un bus à un blanc (les états du Sud appliquaient alors la ségrégation raciale).

Commença ensuite une série de marches pacifiques pour réclamer l'égalité des droits et en particulier les droits civiques. Ce jour-là d'aout 1963, 6 grands leaders noirs appelaient à une marche à Washington, capitale fédérale, pour dénoncer l'inaction de ce gouvernment fédéral face à la ségrégation des états du sud. Le président John F. Kennedy était en partie opposé à cette marche car il pensait qu'elle allait freiner son action pour faire avancer la législation pour les droits civiques. Les manifestants ont tenu bon, organisé la marche, mais modifié une partie des objectifs immédiats et adopté une attitude moins contestatrice.
La marche a été un succès énorme, 250 000 personnes venant de tous les états. A l'époque la plus grande marche de contestation jamais organisée dans la capitale. Mais plus encore, cette journée est restée dans les mémoires à cause du discours de Martin Luther King (un des 6 leaders, futur prix Nobel de la Paix). "I have a dream" est sans doute avec celui de Lincoln, l'adresse de Gettisburg, l'un des plus remarquables de l'histoire des Etats-Unis, par son texte et par la force de déclamation de son orateur. L'extrait choisi ici en rend parfaitement compte.

Les années après en 1964 et 1965, plusieurs lois fédérales étaient votées pour l'égalité, contre la discrimination raciale, en particulier celle dite "Voting Rights Act of 1965" qui déclara illégale toute discrimination en matière de vote et donc permis d'accorder le droit de vote à tous, en particulier aux noirs.

Sources

Eidenmuller, M.E. (2010).Martin Luther King, Jr. "I Have a Dream" [audio]. American Rhetoric [http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm]
Wikipedia (2010). African-American_Civil_Rights_Movement. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African-American_Civil_Rights_Movement]