Yesterday, I was lucky enough to be in the crowd at the National Mall as Barack Obama addressed the massive sea of people gathered to celebrate his impending inauguration. I watched President-Elect Obama take his seat under the watchful eye of Abraham Lincoln and I began to marvel at the spectacle of it all. History was happening before my eyes. With less than 48 hours until Barack Obama assumes the highest office in the land, I couldn't help but think of Martin Luther King. I visualized him standing on those very same stairs some 45 years earlier to deliver his I Have A Dream speech and I could hear his words echoing from a distance. I thought about Rosa Parks and Professor Jo Ann Robinson, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the millions of brave souls who fought for civil rights. I thought about how far we've come together -- and how far we still have to go. The moment quite suddenly became overwhelming. As I stood at the base of the Lincoln Memorial, the words of Dr. King began to grew louder and I recalled his "Our God is Marching On" speech, given to supporters in March of 1965 1956 (correction) at the height of the Montgomery Bus boycott. A snippet of the end of that speech (I encourage you to read the it in its entirety):
I know you are asking today, "How long will it take?" (Speak, sir) Somebody’s asking, "How long will prejudice blind the visions of men, darken their understanding, and drive bright-eyed wisdom from her sacred throne?" Somebody’s asking, "When will wounded justice, lying prostrate on the streets of Selma and Birmingham and communities all over the South, be lifted from this dust of shame to reign supreme among the children of men?" Somebody’s asking, "When will the radiant star of hope be plunged against the nocturnal bosom of this lonely night, (Speak, speak, speak) plucked from weary souls with chains of fear and the manacles of death? How long will justice be crucified, (Speak) and truth bear it?" (Yes, sir)
I come to say to you this afternoon, however difficult the moment, (Yes, sir) however frustrating the hour, it will not be long, (No sir) because "truth crushed to earth will rise again." (Yes, sir)
How long? Not long, (Yes, sir) because "no lie can live forever." (Yes, sir)
How long? Not long, (All right. How long) because "you shall reap what you sow." (Yes, sir)
How long? (How long?) Not long: (Not long)
Truth forever on the scaffold, (Speak)
Wrong forever on the throne, (Yes, sir)
Yet that scaffold sways the future, (Yes, sir)
And, behind the dim unknown,
Standeth God within the shadow,
Keeping watch above his own.
How long? Not long, because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. (Yes, sir)
How long? Not long, (Not long) because:
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord; (Yes, sir)
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored; (Yes)
He has loosed the fateful lightning of his terrible swift sword; (Yes, sir)
His truth is marching on. (Yes, sir)
He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat; (Speak, sir)
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat. (That’s right)
O, be swift, my soul, to answer Him! Be jubilant my feet!
Our God is marching on. (Yeah)
Glory, hallelujah! (Yes, sir) Glory, hallelujah! (All right)
Glory, hallelujah! Glory, hallelujah!
His truth is marching on. [Applause]
So, there we stood, hundreds of thousands of us as one, in the shadow of a larger-than-life President Lincoln. Watching the Obamas take their seats with full military honor guard behind him, I couldn't help but wonder what Dr. King might say on this day to a hopeful President-elect Obama. I thought of all those who made this day possible....all of the everyday heros who refused to give up, refused to give in. I thought about the lives lost on the long, hard road to equality and the ultimate sacrifices they made for all of us. The tears began to flow and I once again heard Dr. King's bellowing voice, rhetorically asking that group of supporters in Alabama -- "How long?" I found myself answering out loud....."not long, Dr. King....truly not long now."