The World's Greatest Psychology

I Have a Dream That Black Lives Will Matter “I have a dream” …What comes to mind when one hears that phrase? What comes to mind is a man named Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. On August 28th, 1963, Dr. King delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech in front of thousands of people. In the first part of his speech, he discusses the racial discrimination that African Americans go through even after slavery was abolished. He portrays not an idealized American dream but a picture of a seething American nightmare of racial injustice (Analysis of Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream Speech, n.d.). He then goes on to talk about how he dreams that one day blacks will be able to have the same equal rights and would be able to sit together in unity with white Americans. The crucial message in Martin Luther King's speech was that all races should be created equal, and even though it was not the case at time, he hoped that there would be a change. When it comes to Black Lives Matter, Alicia Garza is the cofounder of the movement. In her speech “Black Lives Matter”, Garza underlines the prejudices that black minorities go through every day. In her speech, she names people like Michael Brown and Jordan Davis who were murdered due to the color of their skin. She also gives different statistics of how black minorities are treated unfairly. An example being that out 2.9 million people in jail, blacks make up half the quantity. A main highlight in her speech is about domestic work. Garza discusses how domestic work is rooted in and shaped by the legacy of slavery (Center for Constitutional Rights, 2015). In slavery times, black women were forced to take care of families in homes. In today’s world, most of domestic workers are black women. Most of the time they are taken advantage of and not receiving the pay that they deserve. That example alone shows the prejudices that black Americans face in America. Dr. King's uses his leadership, charisma, and passion to capture his audience. He raises his voice in a kind and calm manner which makes his speech feel more powerful and moving. Another way he captures his audience is by using his repetitive phrase “I Have a Dream”. That phrase alone keeps his audience engaged and interested in the points that he is trying to make. He also gives a sense of hope while speaking that is captivating to the audience. Just like Dr. King, Alicia Garza is an equally powerful and captivating speaker. The ways she keeps her audience engaged is by using many real-world examples on the prejudices of black Americans. However, she is not as kind and authoritative as Dr. King. She takes on more of a soft spoken and scornful approach when it comes to getting her audience attention. Something one can take away from both speeches is that there needs to be a fight against racial discrimination. Martin Luther King Jr conducted his speech the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. in front of more than 200,000 people. In1863, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. That document declared that all persons held as slaves shall be set free. (The Emancipation Proclamation, 2019). Dr. King performing his speech at the Lincoln memorial is symbolic because it shows that even though Lincoln signed to abolish slavery one hundred years before the speech was made, there was still an issue with racial discrimination. The location also allowed the audience to connect with history and understand that something needed to be done to make a change. Alicia Garza made her speech at many graduations and Black Lives Matter rallies; she also connects with her audience via social media platforms. Performing at graduations is important because she gives black young adults motivation before entering the next chapter in their lives. Performing at Black Lives Matter rallies, give protesters the confidence in having a voice and utilizing their freedom of speech and lastly social media platforms allows millions of people to hear her message. Social media also keeps Dr. King’s legacy alive because even though he made his speech more than 50 years ago, it is still being heard today. Both King and Garza’s audience was made up of majority black people. Many in which may have been victim of racial discrimination. Both speeches talk about the same goal, which is to fight against racial prejudices in the black community. Their message is also geared towards the equality of all races. Martin Luther King Jr and Alicia Garza are also leaders of social movements. Social movements are organized groups with large numbers of people who use unconventional tactics to have their grievances heard by the public, the news media, and government leaders ((Greenburg & Page, 2018). Just by analyzing their speeches alone, It shows that their movements picked excellent people to lead them into making a change in society.