I Have a Dream speech by Martin Luther King .Jr HD (subtitled)

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. begins by marking the significance of the moment as a demonstration for freedom. He references the Emancipation Proclamation, signed "five score years ago," as a beacon of hope for millions of slaves. However, he laments that 100 years later, African Americans are still not free, suffering from segregation, discrimination, and poverty, living on a "lonely island of poverty amidst a vast ocean of material prosperity."

King articulates his famous "I Have a Dream" vision. He dreams that one day, the nation will true to its creed that "all men are created equal." He envisions a future where the "sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners" can sit together at the table of brotherhood, and where states like Mississippi, sweltering with injustice, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. A pivotal part of his dream is that his children will be judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

He extends his dream to Alabama, a state notorious for its racism and a governor whose "lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification." King dreams that, even there, "little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers."

King emphasizes the transformative power of faith, stating that "every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low." With this faith, he believes they will be able to transform the "jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood." This faith will allow them to work, pray, struggle, and stand up for freedom together.

King concludes with a powerful call for freedom, invoking the lines of "My Country, 'Tis of Thee." He declares, "let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire," and proceeds to list numerous mountains and regions across the United States including New York, Pennsylvania, Colorado, California, Georgia (Stone Mountain), and Tennessee (Lookout Mountain). He affirms that when freedom rings from every mountain and every village, people of all backgrounds will be able to join hands and sing the words of the old Negro spiritual: "Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"