Today we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr., who was Inspired by both his Christian faith and the teachings of Mahatma Gandi. He led a nonviolent movement in the late 1950s and 1960s to achieve legal equality for African-Americans in the United States. Dr. King was a social activist who played a key role in the American Civil Rights movement until his assassination in 1968. He wanted equality and human rights for African-Americans, the economically disadvantaged, and all victims of injustice through peaceful protest.
Dr. King … “had a dream”. As he stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, a monument to the president who a century earlier had brought down the institution of slavery in the United States, he shared his vision of a future in which “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.’”
Those who are homeless, hungry or lonely … they have dreams too. There are countless numbers of men, women, and children in our neighborhoods, state, and country that have a dream. A dream to have a roof over their heads, not to be hungry, and the need for a job so that they can have the life that you and I have.
As a country, we still are a work in progress when it comes to what Dr. King sought: equality and human rights for – African-Americans, the economically disadvantaged, and all victims of injustice through peaceful protest. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul offers assistance to all regardless of creed, ethnic or social background, health, gender or political opinions. Through our prayers and the servant work of the Society we strive every day to help our Friends in Need. We will continue as a Society to be an integral part of the community by doing our part of being there for those in need. By providing food to those that are hungry. By helping those who are homeless. By feeding those who are hungry. By helping those who also “Have a Dream”.