I have a dream....

Martin Luther King, Jr.
"I Have a Dream”
28 August, 1963

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 languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.
In a sense we've 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. And so, we've 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 quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.
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. And 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. And 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. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.
We cannot walk alone.
And 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 self-hood and robbed of their dignity by a sign 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."¹
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. And some of you have come from areas where your quest -- 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.
And 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, and 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."²
This is our hope, and 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.
And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with 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.
And 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 snow-capped 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 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!³

Facebook

Ok Ok, I admit, I like facebook, I even have my real name on it now. Its fun, easy to use, very very convenient and a great way to catch up with old friends without spending lots of time talking (because frankly very few of us have that much time nowadays). But as much as I like facebook I wonder... and just wonder.... I was looking through a friends page and saw a picture of his friend (i'm hoping thats all she was) ... a girl... ok more like woman.. she looked 28ish?Anyway, this girl has a "wonderful" profile picture - a picture of herself straight out NAKED, incase you're wondering not one of those wonderful artistic ones of an artistic body where things are left to your imagination, I mean crazy n-a-k-e-d ie you can see every pore and mole on her face, breasts and hanging belly. May I mention that judging from the picture, I dont believe she is a model by profession (not at a legitimate agency anyway) and that this was a closeup? uurrgghhh but thats besides the point.

Now.. surely... I know I should'nt judge...but John Francis says the only reason foolishness exists in the church is because we dont speak up when we see it, and people keep making the same mistake. So this is me speaking up even though its not in the church because facebook has become a craze and some of us are getting a bit carried away... what in heavens name and on God's green earth possesses someone in their right mind to not only take such a picture and post it on a public site where they cant control its access or use, but to also put their name, their face, their hometown and their school and work next to it? Am I the only one who thinks this is dense? I wonder...

Well... I ran into this article while that nasty picture and this issue was still swirling around in my head. If you are one of those people who's living their life on a 12 inch screen instead of real life - I hope this article motivates you to journal, or buy a video camera (just keep the tapes locked) or a tape recorder... whatever - just spare us the shock of your lack of foresight. Information is power and once one of these little indulgences come out, its virtually impossible to control what happens to them, especially when you finally grow up and want to be taken seriously. (And I wont even get started about those folks who have their full names, full addresses, phone numbers, schools including dorm names, and pictures with their possessions ... all on facebook). My husband used to call me paranoid and I may be... somewhat... if you insist.... but in this day of stalkers and perverts is'nt that just plain dumb??
Well....Happy reading!

Job candidates getting tripped up by Facebook
Many students learn the hard way that online image can limit opportunity
By Wei Du

Van Allen runs a company that recruits job candidates for hospitals and clinics across the country. With physicians in short supply, he was happy to come across the resume of a well-qualified young female psychiatrist. As part of his due diligence check, Allen looked her up in Facebook, a popular social networking Web site, and found things that made him think twice.
“Pictures of her taking off her shirt at parties,” he said. “Not just on one occasion, but on another occasion, then another occasion.”
Concerned about those pictures, he called the candidate and asked for an explanation. She didn’t get the job.
“Hospitals want doctors with great skills to provide great services to communities,” Allen said. “They also don’t want patients to say to each other, 'Heard about Dr. Jones? You’ve got to see those pictures.’”
Job candidates who maintain personal sites on Facebook or MySpace are learning — sometimes the hard way — that the image they present to their friends on the Internet may not be best suited for landing the position they’re seeking.
Although many employers are too old to qualify as members of the Facebook Generation, they’re becoming increasingly savvy about using social networking sites in their hiring due diligence. That has both job candidates and human resources professionals debating the ethics and effectiveness of snooping on the Web for the kind of information that may not come up in an interview. According to a March survey by Ponemon Institute, a privacy think tank, 35 percent of hiring managers use Google to do online background checks on job candidates, and 23 percent look people up on social networking sites. About one-third of those Web searches lead to rejections, according to the survey.
Social networking sites have gained popularity among hiring managers because of their convenience and a growing anxiety about hiring the right people, researchers say.
Big corporations long have retained professional investigators to check job applicants’ academic degrees, criminal records and credit reports. But until now the cost has deterred the ability of smaller firms to do the same level of checking, said Sue Murphy, a director of National Human Resources Association.
One problem is that there is little to prevent hiring managers from discriminating on the basis of personal information discovered through social Web sites.
"There's just not much legislation on that yet," Murphy said.
New college graduates, the most active social networkers, are most likely to be the target of Web research.
“For people new to a field, companies just don’t have a lot to look back on,” Murphy said. “They can’t call up your former boss. They look you up on Facebook.”
Financial services firms and the health care providers are among the biggest users of social networking sites, said Larry Ponemon, founder of the Ponemon Institute.
“These industries are stewards of people’s property and health, and companies really look for a high level of integrity,” said Ponemon.
Professional services like law and consulting firms also are big users, because companies care about how employees present themselves to clients and look for clues in how applicants present themselves online.
Risqué pictures are not the only way a job applicant can be tripped up. Pictures of illegal behavior like drug use, or heavy alcohol use, could disqualify a candidate. Some also suggest poor writing and bad grammar on Facebook profiles and in blog entries can raise a red flag about communication skills. Derogatory comments or complaints or radical political positions also can draw the scrutiny of a prospective employer.
One job applicant indicated in his Facebook profile that he was a leading hacker, and he was applying to be a computer security analyst, said Ponemon. He didn’t get the job.
“It’s amazing how many things people just put out there,” said Murphy of the human resources association.
Facebook users often don’t expect their personal information to be monitored by potential employers, and many consider their online profile information to be private.
A study by IDPa workforce consulting firm, showed that 66 percent of Generation Y respondents, those in their late teens and 20s, were not aware the information they put online can be factored into hiring decisions. Fifty-six percent said they think the practice is unfair.
Originally Facebook was seen as a safe "closed circuit" site, in which profiles would only be visible to people in a limited group. The site originally required users to register with a valid college e-mail address. But the site loosened the restriction last summer to allow anyone to register with a valid e-mail account. Facebook networks, which had been relatively small, expanded to include companies and even large geographic areas.
The new policies of Facebook drew public attention this year when Miss New Jersey Amy Polumbo nearly lost her crown after being blackmailed over pictures of her that were taken off her Facebook profile. Ultimately the judges decided not to take away her title, but her crown was tarnished.
“This was meant to be private,” Polumbo told TODAY Show host Matt Lauer, referring to photos that showed her fully clothed but posing provocatively and drinking at clubs.
“People have a common misconception about how big their networks really are,” said Michael Fertik, CEO of Reputationdefender.com, a year-old startup offering services to minimize the damage of Web background checks. “Nothing on the Internet is private. Period.”
Reputationdefender.com offers to monitor one’s Web reputation for $10 a month plus a one-time fee of $30 to remove from the Web an unwanted item that may have slipped out of the user’s control.
In one high-profile case last spring, a group of law school students found that pictures were taken off their Facebook accounts and reposted onto an online discussion board without their permission. Whoever posted the pictures then invited suggestive comments.
The law students tried to have their pictures removed from the discussion board, complaining that had been shunned in job interviews.
“People also have to understand the standard you will be judged against in hiring,” said Fertik. “Employers don’t have to believe what they see — they only have to decide not to take a chance on you.”
Cleaning up your Web self : Career consultants advise students to check their online appearance before applying for jobs. Some tips:
-- Google yourself early and often, to know what has been said about you. If you see false or unauthorized information, ask the webmaster to remove the content.
-- Be careful about what you post on social networking sites. Don't post anything you wouldn't want a potential employer to see. Change the privacy setting to make personal information available only to close friends.
-- Create a positive virtual presence. Start a blog about your industry. It might not lead to a job, but it will help define your online persona and help push down unfavorable items in Web searches.