WE ALL HOLD DREAMS. Hopes and desires and wishes that improve our lives. Financially, mentally, emotionally and otherwise. Perhaps they are dreams directed inward. Or they are dreams for others in our lives, especially our loved ones.
Sixty years ago today, Martin Luther King, Jr. revealed his dream at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC. His was a powerful speech packed with powerful words that resonated as much on August 28, 1963 as they do today:
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 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.
King’s statements in “I have a dream” held the hope of Americans denied very basic civil and voting rights simply because of their skin color. A year later, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 became law, prohibiting discrimination (and segregation) in public places. Passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 followed, assuring the right to vote. But the struggle continued as it does today for people of color.
Back in 1964 and 1965, I was too young and too far removed from the Civil Rights Movement to have any knowledge of what was happening in the world beyond my childhood home in southwestern Minnesota. I lived in a rural area of primarily Germans and Scandinavians, where the only difference was in religion. Either you were Lutheran or you were Catholic with a few Presbyterians, Methodists and Brethren tossed in.
I don’t recall ever seeing a Black person. Few, if any, lived in Redwood County. Indigenous Peoples lived on nearby reservations to the east and to the west by Morton and Granite Falls. But I never saw the Dakota, never interacted. Mine was a world of whiteness. Now I am the mother-in-law of a man whose father is black, his mother white. I’ve heard my son-in-law’s unsettling stories of what it’s like to be a Black man in America today.
Today I live in a place of varied colors and cultures. For that I feel thankful. At the core, we are all just people with hopes, desires, wishes. We all hold dreams, no matter our skin color.
© Copyright 2023 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
If only MLK JR’s dream could come true for all of us!!
If only… We need to continue striving. All of us.
Yes Audrey. I too have a son-in-law that is black. Both of his parents were black. He and my daughter will celebrate 49 years of marriage this coming December. They have 2 daughters, and 1 son. They have 7 grandchildren. This man has brought much fun time, and love since he has been a member of our family. He treats me with love. Both of his parents have died, so I am now his mom. I wouldn’t trade him for anyone else.
What loving words for your wonderful son-in-law.
Yes, when it hits us personally it goes deep to the heart. One of my sons in law isAfrican American and my two grandchildren in this part of the family are mixed. Since they were quite young we’ve all had challenging situations and conversations with the kids and their dad. It really gave me a close up and personal view of racism and acceptance both, in our society
You’re definitely right on “when it hits us personally it goes deep to the heart.” It sounds like your family has worked hard to address issues and also to embrace acceptance.
it’s an ongoing discussion and we all continue to help as we go
Ah, to be loved and supported by you…
sadly, it’s something they’ve all had to deal with already in a variety of ways
Growing up in “whiteness” really resonated with me. The first black person I spoke to was in my junior year of high school. Charles was Kenyan I believe. He was living with a classmate’s family as part of a church program. He was not an AFS exchange student; in our school, most of those students came from Europe or South America. In college, I recall very few students of color. Maybe it was my classes, or did I just not notice? Your words reminded me of how or when I first became aware of diversity. Fortunately my career was with U of M Extension. Over the years, diversity, civil rights, and equal treatment and equal education opportunity were what we did. Thanks for bringing attention to MLK’s dreams of a better world.
Colleen, I appreciate your insights on growing up in “whiteness” in rural Minnesota. Going to college really opened my mind and broadened my world as does living in a diverse community like Faribault.
Ditto. I have an African daughter-in-law, and yes, she says she sometimes feels discriminated against. And she lives in a community much more diverse than southern Minnesota.
I’m thankful Andrea has you to love, support and encourage her.
Thank you. I do.