Monday, January 17, 2011

Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King




Today is a special day this would have marked the 82nd Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King. In a world that has seen segregation and racism only 43years ago which doesn't seem that long ago. We as Americans have overcome these struggles to let the Next generation know what Dr. Martin Luther King fought for which was the Civil Rights movement a movement that inspired change that we see today with are 43rd President Barack Obama. My pray is that we will NEVER forget the struggles but remember who we are as a Nation under GOD Thank GOD for Dr. Martin Luther King and his vision. Now let us continue 2 Live it OUT. Here is Dr. Martin Luther Kings "I Have A Dream" speech.

In 1950's America, the equality of man envisioned by the Declaration of Independence was far from a reality. People of color — blacks, Hispanics, Asians — were discriminated against in many ways, both overt and covert. The 1950's were a turbulent time in America, when racial barriers began to come down due to Supreme Court decisions, like Brown v. Board of Education; and due to an increase in the activism of blacks, fighting for equal rights.

Martin Luther King, Jr., a Baptist minister, was a driving force in the push for racial equality in the 1950's and the 1960's. In 1963, King and his staff focused on Birmingham, Alabama. They marched and protested non-violently, raising the ire of local officials who sicced water cannon and police dogs on the marchers, whose ranks included teenagers and children. The bad publicity and break-down of business forced the white leaders of Birmingham to concede to some anti-segregation demands.

Thrust into the national spotlight in Birmingham, where he was arrested and jailed, King helped organize a massive march on Washington, DC, on August 28, 1963. His partners in the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom included other religious leaders, labor leaders, and black organizers. The assembled masses marched down the Washington Mall from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial, heard songs from Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, and heard speeches by actor Charlton Heston, NAACP president Roy Wilkins, and future U.S. Representative from Georgia John Lewis.

King's appearance was the last of the event; the closing speech was carried live on major television networks. On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, King evoked the name of Lincoln in his "I Have a Dream" speech, which is credited with mobilizing supporters of desegregation and prompted the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The next year, King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

The following is the exact text of the spoken speech, transcribed from recordings.

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check — a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. 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 quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.
Martin Luther King, Jr., delivering his 'I Have a Dream' speech from the steps of Lincoln Memorial. (photo: National Park Service)

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.

We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. They have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone.

As we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back. 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 selfhood 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.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.

Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.

I say to you today, my friends, 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, 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. This is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."

And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!

Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California!

But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"

http://www.usconstitution.net/dream.html

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Behind the Scenes




Well it's hump day known to most as Wednesday, I know that this week is almost over can't WAIT till Friday well here is some words of Wisdom that will help U get through 2day. Taken from my Daily Devotional Our daily Bread.

Your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. —Matthew 6:6


The service that we do for God
May go unpraised by men;
But when we stand before the Lord,
He will reward us then. —Sper

It is better to earn recognition without getting it than to get recognition without earning it.

Friday, January 7, 2011

Purple Day N Dallas Texas




1 of my Favorite Icon ever since I was 3 years old name Prince will be playing at formally Reunion Arena N Dallas Texas during Super Bowl Weekend to benefit The Goss-Foundation. Here is the 411 on the Event and it's Location.

PRINCE TO PERFORM AT the Event
BENEFITING THE GOSS-MICHAEL FOUNDATION
DURING THE BIGGEST WEEKEND IN FOOTBALL
WHEN: Friday, February 4, 2011 at 8:00 p.m.

WHERE: the Event Tent Complex at the site formerly known as Reunion Arena
Reunion Boulevard
Dallas, TX 75207


WHAT: the Event, is an all-inclusive evening of music and culture with an intimate performance with legendary songwriter, musician, producer, actor and performer – the one and only Prince, benefiting The Goss-Michael Foundation.

This all-inclusive soiree boasts music, art, food, spirits and more. Along with the rare performance by Prince, entertainment will include music from The Goss-Michael Foundation scholarship winners, guest DJ’s, a silent auction, as well as additional special guests to be announced.

the Event will be held in Downtown Dallas at the site formerly known as Reunion Arena on Reunion Boulevard in an exclusive custom designed climate-controlled performance tent.

Arts and Culture supporters can experience the Event with those who are as invested in the community as they are through ticket and table donations benefiting The Goss-Michael Foundation. “One of The Goss-Michael Foundation’s missions has been to encourage the talents of young artists, both visual and performing, through our statewide high school scholarship programs. With the funds raised at this one-of-a-kind event, students will be able to reach for their dreams. Prince is an artist that hundreds of millions of people around the world admire. Our scholarship winners and all of us are honored that Prince has selected The Goss-Michael-Foundation as the beneficiary” says Joyce Goss of The Goss-Michael Foundation

“Single Ticket $1500 Contribution” includes general admission, open bar and food stations.
“VIP Nest for Six $12,000 Contribution” includes VIP admission, reserved lounge style seating for six, dedicated server for drinks and food.
“Head Table for Ten $25,000 Contribution” includes VIP admission, plush stage side seating for 10 and dedicated server for food and bottle service.

Tickets on sale from Friday 7th January at http://www.princedallas.com/

WHO: A music legend, Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label, writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of the instruments on his recordings. He has won seven Grammy™ Awards, a Golden Globe™ and an Academy Award™. In 2004, Prince was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In that same year Rolling Stone ranked Prince #28 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. According to Robert Larsen in his book, History of Rock and Roll, Prince is "one of the most talented and commercially successful pop musicians of the last 20 years". On February 4th, 2007, he performed for the Super Bowl XLI Halftime show, Billboard.com called it the greatest Super Bowl performance ever.

About The Goss-Michael Foundation™

The Goss-Michael Foundation, founded by recording artist George Michael and his partner Kenny Goss. is dedicated to contributing to Dallas' thriving artistic community and enhancing the public's familiarity and interaction with mid- career and emerging British artists. Through the Foundation, the public is not only able to view the work of internationally renowned artists, but is able to see the relationships that exist between them within the context of the collection. In addition to its stimulating exhibitions, the Foundation has assembled a resource center, providing a library and archive of research materials for the benefit of students, educators and aspiring young artists, as well as a growing scholarship program benefiting Texas high school seniors. Since 2007, over $50,000 in scholarships has been awarded to visual arts and music students enabling them to pursue a higher education in the arts. http://www.gossmichaelfoundation.com

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Get Involved 2011



HAPPIE NEW YEAR 2 ALL!

I pray that 2011 is a year of new beginnings and growth here is something 2 think about this New Year.

Let’s get involved in the lives of others and tell them about Jesus. He is the only source of spiritual power and satisfies our deepest longings. —Marvin Williams

Help me to see the tragic plight
Of souls far off in sin;
Help me to love, to pray, and go
To bring the wandering in. —Harrison