"Out of the Mountain of Despair, a Stone of Hope

It has taken nearly 20 years to complete a monument in Washington, DC, in honour of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Over the summer, I read an excellent biography of Thomas Jefferson.  The book details Jefferson's many intellecutal accomplishments: the writing of Notes on Virginia, the Declaration of Independence and Jefferson's remarkable intellectual strengths and his depth of feeling for fellow human beings.

This biography also dealt with the issue of him being a slave owner and maintaining a life-long relationship with his slave Sally Hemings (after the death of his first wife).  Since then I have been reading a bit about the British colonization of North America and their attitudes towards the slave trade, all of which has given me a much greater perspective on the struggles of a.) Americans to gain their democratic freedom b.) the descendants of African slaves and their generations-long attempt to win justice and equality for themselves.

Oftentimes, we who are involved in movements for change are too impatient and we sell ourselves short.  We think we have not succeeded because tomorrow things will be largely as they are today.  But reflecting on the 'long train of history' - from 1948's "I Have a Dream" until today's reality, that a black family lives in the "white house,"  we see that culture does change, and that individuals do make a difference.

So when I heard they carved on the side of the monument "With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope" - which comes from the "I Have a Dream" speech, it reminded me that human beings have the remarkable capacity to change the world for the better. 

It's hard to believe that it took so long for a man who did so much for so many to be memorialized (rightfully) among Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln.  But some things do change, after all.