Writer mulls status of King's vision at Pachyderms meeting

Southeast Missouri Pachyderm Club president Jim Roche called the group's Thursday night meeting at Dexter Bar-B-Que a "momentous occasion" as Adrienne Ross prepared to deliver her presentation "Martin Luther King's Dream: Where Are We Now?"

He praised Ross' talent as a public speaker -- the former schoolteacher is owner of Adrienne Ross Communications, a freelance writer (including for the Southeast Missourian) and editor for Breitbart News Network -- and said the timing of the event was special since it took place on King's birthday. Martin Luther King Jr. Day is celebrated Monday.

Ross said preparing her speech and considering the progress of King's dream was complicated. Many of the issues surrounding racial differences have become political, making conversation difficult, she said.

King is often remembered, especially this time of year, for his "I Have a Dream" speech. But Ross said the civil rights leader's dream was about more than one speech. The speech he delivered just before his assassination in 1968 has a powerful message worth remembering, too, she said.

"Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place," King said in what is known as his "Mountaintop" speech. "But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we ... will get to the promised land."

His spirituality and recognition of a divine plan is what makes King stand apart from the others in the discussion of equality and race relations, Ross said. Because of his faith, she said King did not seek equality as a human being -- he knew people of all races were equal, stating the fact as "self-evident" as it's described in the Constitution -- but equality in treatment. He called for people to be judged by character rather than the color of their skin.

Ross asked the crowd whether they believed America has achieved King's dream, to which the overwhelming answer was "somewhat." She agreed, and said while some issues were overcome, others, even segregation, still could be seen in the country.

"In some ways, we're very much segregated. Our churches, our communities, our schools, our political parties -- just look around the room," she said to the predominantly white crowd.

Moving forward with King's dream comes from talking about the issue of race, not talking around it, Ross said. She pointed to situations such as the Ferguson, Missouri, protests that erupted after a white officer killed an unarmed black teenager and how many used the event to create division rather than unity. The election of Barack Obama as the nation's first black president also could have brought unity, she said, but ultimately brought more division as many lob the word "racist" at those who disagree with his actions. Ross again mentioned King's plea for character over color.

"There are some things more important than color, and that's what King was saying," she said. "... Unless we get things together we're going to see more violence. We've got to go forward and we've got to do it together and we can't let bitterness get in the way."

srinehart@semissourian.com

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