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 100 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 that 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 security of justice. We have also come to his 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. Those who hoped 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. 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 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 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. (Part 1) 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.
(Part 2) 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.
(part 3) 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.
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, 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 father's 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, and 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!"
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Distribution statement: Accepted as part of the Douglass Archives of American Public Address (http://douglass.speech.nwu.edu) on May 26, 1999. Prepared by D. Oetting (http://nonce.com/oetting).
Permission is hereby granted to download, reprint, and/or otherwise redistribute this file, provided this distribution statement is included and appropriate point of origin credit is given to the preparer and Douglass.
Watch the video of the whole speech here:
Monday, February 26, 2007
Quickway 3 Listening for Second Year Classes
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Quickway 3: Listening
Listen to an interview between Mr. McCullogh, an English Professor of Linguistics and two Moroccan teachers, Mrs. Kadiri, and Mr. Dahbi:
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Click here to download the audio file of this interview.
Quickway 3 Grammar
SEPARABLE AND NONSEPERABLE
The term phrasal verb refers to a verb and a preposition which together have a special meaning.
There are two types of phrasal verbs:
With a separable phrasal verb, a noun may come either between the verb and the preposition or after the preposition as in this example:
I put my jacket on or I put on my jacket.
BUT if we replace the noun by a pronoun (me, you, him, her, it, us, them) like in this example:
(my jacket --->it ), the pronoun always comes between the verb and the preposition.
I put it on.
With a nonseparable phrasal verb, a noun or pronoun must follow the preposition as in this example:
I always get off the bus near the pharmacy.
Practice your phrasal verbs here
For more details, click the relevant link under 'Useful Links'
Quickway 3 Grammar
1. The relative Clauses:
Also called Adjective Clauses, they come after nouns and modify them. In other words, they tell the listener or reader more about the person or thing that the noun refers to.
The pronouns that often begin adjective clauses are called relative pronouns ( that, which, who, whom, whose, where ...)
For example:
A person who repairs cars in a workshop is known as a mechanic.
A person who sells vegetables is a greengrocer.
The man who gave you my telephone number is a friend of mine.
2. Reducing Adjective Clauses to Adjective Phrases:
If the subject relative pronoun ( who, which, that ) is followed by the verb be in any tense, both the relative pronoun and the verb be can be omitted.
For example:
The students who are working on the immigration project are absent today .
--> The students working on the immigration project are absent today.
The articles which were published in the school magazine yesterday are about the negative effects of stereotypes.
--> The articles published in the school magazine yesterday are about the negative effects of stereotypes.
3. Relative pronouns as objects:
The object relative pronouns for people are who, whom, that. Whom is more formal than who. The object relative pronouns for things are which, that. It is also possible to omit these pronouns.
For example:
The class leader whom the majority of the students elected became the president of the students' union.
-->The class leader the majority of the students elected became the president of the students' union.
Ahmed is the right person that we need for this position.
--> Ahmed is the right person we need for this position.
4. Restrictive/Nonrestrictive Relative Clauses:
The two main types of adjective clauses are:
Restrictive (or Defining Relative Clause) and Nonrestrictive (or Non-Defining Relative Clause) have distinct meanings and uses.
A restrictive adjective clause gives information that helps to identify the noun that it describes.
For example:
My sister who attends Al-Akhawyn university is very studious. (I have two sisters: One of them attends attends Al-Akhawayn university , the other doesn't).
However, a Nonrestrictive adjective clause, adds additional information about the noun it describes. This information is not necessary to identify the noun.
For example:
Samira, who attends Al-Akhawyn university, is very studious. (She attends Al-Akhawyn university is extra information).
Tetuan, which is located in the north of Morocco, is a World’s Cultural Heritage. (Tetuan is located in the north of Morocco) is not necessary to understand the information in the sentence.
5. The relative pronouns: whose - when - where:
WHOSE replaces the possessive forms of nouns and pronouns. It can refer to people, animals or things. It can be part of a subject or part of an object of a verb or preposition, but it cannot be a complete subject or object. Whose cannot be omitted.
For example:
The man is very thankful. I found the man’s wallet. (His wallet)
-->The man whose wallet I found is very thankful.
The girl is jumping with excitemnt. Her mother won the lottery. (The girl’s mother)
-->The girl whose mother won the lottery is jumping with excitement.
WHEN replaces a time (in + year, in + month, on + day,...). It cannot be a subject. It can be omitted.
For example:
I will never forget the day. I graduated on that day.
-->I will never forget the day when I graduated.
The same meaning can be expressed in other ways:
-->I will never forget the day on which I graduated.
-->I will never forget the day that I graduated.
-->I will never forget the day I graduated.
WHERE replaces a place (in + country, in + city, at + school,...). It cannot be a subject. It can be omitted but a preposition (at, in, to) usually must be added.
For example:
The building is being reconstructed. Leila works in the building. (there)
-->The building where Leila works is being reconstructed.
The same meaning can be expressed in other ways:
-->The building in which Leila works is being reconstructed.
-->The building which Leila works in is being reconstructed.
-->The building that Leila works in is being reconstructed.
-->The building Leila works in is being reconstructed.
For more details, click the relevant link under 'Useful Links'
Thursday, February 1, 2007
Quickway 3 Grammar
1. The relative Clauses:
Also called Adjective Clauses, they come after nouns and modify them. In other words, they tell the listener or reader more about the person or thing that the noun refers to.
The pronouns that often begin adjective clauses are called relative pronouns ( that, which, who, whom, whose, where ...)
For example:
A person who repairs cars in a workshop is known as a mechanic.
A person who sells vegetables is a greengrocer.
The man who gave you my telephone number is a friend of mine.
2. Reducing Adjective Clauses to Adjective Phrases:
If the subject relative pronoun ( who, which, that ) is followed by the verb be in any tense, both the relative pronoun and the verb be can be omitted.
For example:
The students who are working on the immigration project are absent today .
--> The students working on the immigration project are absent today.
The articles which were published in the school magazine yesterday are about the negative effects of stereotypes.
--> The articles published in the school magazine yesterday are about the negative effects of stereotypes.
3. Relative pronouns as objects:
The object relative pronouns for people are who, whom, that. Whom is more formal than who. The object relative pronouns for things are which, that. It is also possible to omit these pronouns.
For example:
The class leader whom the majority of the students elected became the president of the students' union.
-->The class leader the majority of the students elected became the president of the students' union.
Ahmed is the right person that we need for this position.
--> Ahmed is the right person we need for this position.
4. Restrictive/Nonrestrictive Relative Clauses:
The two main types of adjective clauses are:
Restrictive (or Defining Relative Clause) and Nonrestrictive (or Non-Defining Relative Clause) have distinct meanings and uses.
A restrictive adjective clause gives information that helps to identify the noun that it describes.
For example:
My sister who attends Al-Akhawyn university is very studious. (I have two sisters: One of them attends attends Al-Akhawayn university , the other doesn't).
However, a Nonrestrictive adjective clause, adds additional information about the noun it describes. This information is not necessary to identify the noun.
For example:
Samira, who attends Al-Akhawyn university, is very studious. (She attends Al-Akhawyn university is extra information).
Tetuan, which is located in the north of Morocco, is a World’s Cultural Heritage. (Tetuan is located in the north of Morocco) is not necessary to understand the information in the sentence.
5. The relative pronouns: whose - when - where:
WHOSE replaces the possessive forms of nouns and pronouns. It can refer to people, animals or things. It can be part of a subject or part of an object of a verb or preposition, but it cannot be a complete subject or object. Whose cannot be omitted.
For example:
The man is very thankful. I found the man’s wallet. (His wallet)
-->The man whose wallet I found is very thankful.
The girl is jumping with excitemnt. Her mother won the lottery. (The girl’s mother)
-->The girl whose mother won the lottery is jumping with excitement.
WHEN replaces a time (in + year, in + month, on + day,...). It cannot be a subject. It can be omitted.
For example:
I will never forget the day. I graduated on that day.
-->I will never forget the day when I graduated.
The same meaning can be expressed in other ways:
-->I will never forget the day on which I graduated.
-->I will never forget the day that I graduated.
-->I will never forget the day I graduated.
WHERE replaces a place (in + country, in + city, at + school,...). It cannot be a subject. It can be omitted but a preposition (at, in, to) usually must be added.
For example:
The building is being reconstructed. Leila works in the building. (there)
-->The building where Leila works is being reconstructed.
The same meaning can be expressed in other ways:
-->The building in which Leila works is being reconstructed.
-->The building which Leila works in is being reconstructed.
-->The building that Leila works in is being reconstructed.
-->The building Leila works in is being reconstructed.
For more details, click the relevant link under 'Useful Links'
