His words still echo today.
"Desegregation is 'enforceable,' but integration is not," Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said.
"We do not have to look very far to see the pernicious effects of a desegregated society that is not integrated," he wrote. "It leads to 'physical proximity without spiritual affinity.' It gives us a society where men are physically desegregated and spiritually segregated, where elbows are together and hearts are apart. It gives us special togetherness and spiritual apartness. It leaves us with a stagnant equality of sameness rather than a constructive equality of oneness."
King was -- and still is -- absolutely right.
As we enter the 35th year since his assassination, the separation between the races is still obvious. While our world may be physically desegregated, many reject integration in spirit.
We don't even realize we do it. Look around. Too many times students are drawn to those who are similar to them while walking down the street, eating lunch or socializing throughout the day. In doing so, we miss out on the wonders different people present to us.
Take, for example, the Daily News Editorial Board: 16 white Americans, one white Ukrainian.
The Daily News is not innocent, and it is not alone.
Certainly, our campus has multicultural representation, but Ball State's student body is mostly white.
This was not King's dream. King's dream was to see a mix of all races, all sharing their lives together.
We all still have a long way to go.
King's "I Have A Dream" speech is his most well-known. While the "Dream" speech may be his most important, his wisdom is evident throughout his philosophies.
Below on this page are King's own words, taken from his other, lesser-known speeches and writings.
These are just some of the thoughts behind the dream.
We should all listen again.
Read More
Three Air Jam teams take home the win
October 12, 2012Nineteen teams shimmied, shook and flipped for a sold out John R. Emens Auditorium on Thursday night during the 25th annual Air Jam.
Bill Clinton Speaks at North Central High School
October 12, 2012Former President's Speech Could Have Effect on State Senate Race
