Classic Book of the Month: I Have a Dream by Kadir Nelson

NICK EICHER, HOST: Today is Tuesday, February 6th. Thank you for turning to The WORLD and Everything in It to help start your day!

Good morning. I’m Nick Eicher.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: And I’m Mary Reichard.

Coming next: Black History Month. It’s this month. It’s a sad fact that today some people present America’s racial history in a way that further divides people along ethnic lines. But WORLD book reviewer Emily Whitten says a classic picture book for families can help.

KING: One day in Alabama, little black boys and little black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and little white girls as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today!

EMILY WHITTEN, REVIEWER: That’s Martin Luther King Jr. giving his “I Have a Dream” speech in August of 1963. Radio and TV mics carried his words across the country, and as many as 250,000 people watched in person as he spoke from the Lincoln Memorial during the march for civil rights.

You’ve probably heard of that speech before, but you may not have heard of our Classic Book of the Month for February. It’s also titled I Have a Dream. Published in 2012, it pairs some of the most powerful language of King’s speech with vivid oil paintings by artist Kadir Nelson.

NELSON: My art is inspired, I think, primarily by great stories. I really like stories of being able to overcome great odds.

Nelson certainly presents King as a hero, but to some extent, he isn’t the main focus. Instead, Nelson often focuses on themes of the speech like freedom and the brotherhood of man. We do see images of King and the crowd, but we also see a joyful choir of children singing “My country tis of thee….”. Another spread shows a close up of a white hand and black hand folded together in solidarity, complemented by these words.

KING: With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

In the 1960s, King stood for integration when many white and some black leaders promoted segregation and did not believe black and white people could thrive together. Neil Shenvi is co-author of Critical Dilemma, one of WORLD’s Books of the Year for 2023. He says that much of King’s speech remains significant in our day.

SHENVI: He appealed to our solidarity as human beings created in God's image. And he dreamed of a world, not where there's this battle between oppressors and oppressed, he dreamed of a world in which we could embrace each other as brothers and lay down our arms across lines of race and ethnicity.

Shenvi says King also draws on the best ideals of American history and law.

KING: 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.”

SHENVI: In that speech “I Have a Dream,” Dr. King appealed to our founding documents and said, hey, America, live up to your good, righteous, just ideals. Whereas in contrast, critical race theorists tend to see the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution as oppressive documents, as ways in which white men impose their dominance on culture.

Of course, King spoke at a particular place and time.

SHENVI: It's not just a string of platitudes and one-liners. He was speaking about real people and real events. So he talks about, at the time he was speaking, people were being thrown in jail, homes and churches were being bombed. And this happened 50 years ago–within living memory.

Our Classic Book of the Month, I Have a Dream by Kadir Nelson is a fantastic first look at King’s speech, but it doesn’t provide much context. So, families may want to use the book as a jumping off point to learn more about the civil rights movement.

This picture book for ages 3-13 includes an audio CD of King’s entire speech–something all ages can appreciate. Christians may note a lot of Bible references, and Nelson doesn’t shy away from these. He offers a striking pastoral interpretation of Isaiah’s “every valley” exalted and “every hill and mountain made low”. And on the book’s final spread, white doves launch into blue sky as King delivers his closing lines:

KING: Free at last, free at last, Thank God almighty, we are free at last!

That’s a powerful chorus, though it’s worth noting that man’s longing for freedom can only be ultimately fulfilled by Christ himself. Our sin and need for salvation is far too great for any human political solution. As for King’s own Christian faith, he certainly showed extraordinary courage and love for his enemies worth celebrating; but he also struggled with serious failings including adultery.

Still, King’s “I Have a Dream” speech remains one of the greatest speeches of American history. Shenvi says he often highlights King and other civil rights leaders for the diverse students of his homeschool co-op class.

SHENVI: I want them to understand that racism is wrong and that race today is still a salient social fact. But I don't want them to internalize that because they just play with their friends. And you see it in a playground, these little kids running around, red hair, blonde hair, black hair, dark skin, light skin. They couldn't care less. It's beautiful. I think it's what King was dreaming for and aren't we grateful to have that at least in part?

I’m Emily Whitten.

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