For years now I have heard the word "wait." It rings in the ear of every Negro with a piercing familiarity. This "wait" has almost always meant "never."
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the frustration of being told to wait for equality and justice, suggesting that waiting often leads to inaction and unfulfilled promises.
Martin Luther King Jr. highlights the deep sense of impatience and disillusionment within the African American community regarding the continuous demand to wait for justice and civil rights. He argues that the word 'wait' has historically implied a denial of rights and a postponement of dignity, perpetuating a cycle where progress feels impossible, thus empowering his call for immediate action against racial injustice.
In practice
Use this quote in a speech about civil rights activism to emphasize the importance of immediate action.
This business of burning human beings with napalm, of filling our nation's homes with orphans and widows, of injecting poisonous drugs of hate into veins of peoples normally humane, of sending men home from dark and bloody battlefields physically handicapped and psychologically deranged, cannot be reconciled with wisdom, justice and love.
Music is the best consolation for a despaired man
We must meet the forces of hate with the power of love.
We may have all come on different ships, but we're in the same boat now.
Israel... is one of the great outpost of democracy in the world
One of the greatest casualties of the war in Vietnam is the Great Society... shot down on the battlefield of Vietnam.
Brave men rejoice in adversity, just as brave soldiers triumph in war.
Emeth came walking forward into the open strip of grass between the bonfire and the Stable. His eyes were shining, his face was solemn, his hand was on his sword-hilt, and he carried his head high. Jill felt like crying when she looked at his face. And Jewel whispered in the King's ear, "By the Lion's Mane, I almost love this young warrior, Calormene though he be. He is worthy of a better god than Tash.
For black and Asian people of my generation, the England team and the cross of St George were once ingredients in a toxic broth. For decades, a minority of England fans brought the nation and the national team into disrepute, bringing violence both to foreign streets and immigrant communities at home.
I would rather die a thousand deaths than surrender.
I believe that the only courage anybody ever needs is the courage to follow your own dreams.
The courage of life is often a less dramatic spectacle than the courage of a final moment; but it is no less a magnificent mixture of triumph and tragedy.
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