awe-struck as everyone else. i knew martin was an excellent preacher because i had seen him deliver on many occasions. but on that day, martin achieved greatness because he melded the hopes and dreams of millions into a grand vision of healing, reconciliation and brotherhood. the dream my brother shared with our nation and world on that sweltering day, a day 50 years ago, continues to further clear and sustain nonviolent activists

nurture and sustain nonviolent activists worldwide in that struggle for freedom and human rights. in deed, this gathering provides a powerful testament of hope and proof positive that martin's great dream will live on in the hearts of humanity for generations to come. our challenge as followers of martin luther king jr. is to now honor his life, leadership and legacy by living our lives in a legacy by living our lives in a way that carries forward the unfinished work. there is no better way to honor his sacrifices and contributions than by becoming champions of nonviolence. in our homes, communities and

places of work, worship and learning wherever, every day. the dream martin shared on that day a half century ago remains a definitive statement of the american dream, the beautiful vision of a diverse, freedom-loving people united in our love of justice, brotherhood and sisterhood. yes, they can play the dream but -- they can slay the dreamer but they cannot destroy his dream. his dream is a vision not yet to be realized, a dream yet unfilled and we have much to do before we can celebrate the

dream as a reality. as the suppression of voting rights and horrific violence that has taken the lives of trayvon martin and young people all across america and has so painfully demonstrated. but, despite the influences and challenges we face, we are here today to affirm the dream. we are not going to be we are not going to be distracted. we are not going to be defeated. instead, we are going forward into this uncertain future with courage and determination to make the dream a vibrant reality. so, the work to fulfill the dream goes on.

and despite the daunting challenges we face on the road to the beloved community, i feel that the dream is sinking deep and nourishing roots all across america and around the world. may it continue to thrive and spread and help bring justice, peace and liberation to all humanity. thank you and god bless you all. [cheers and applause] >> please welcome reverend [applause]e king.

>> president obama, mrs. obama, president carter and clinton, congressman lewis, ambassador young, my brother martin iii, to my entire family. i was five months old when my father delivered his "i have a dream" speech and i probably was somewhere crawling on the floor or taking a nap after having a meal. but the day is a glorious day because on this program today we have witnessed a manifestation of the beloved community. and we thank everyone for their presence here today. today we have been honored to have three presidents of the united states. 50 years ago, the president did not attend. today we are honored to have

many women in the planning and mobilization of the 50th anniversary of the march on washington. [applause] >> 50 years ago there was not a single woman on the program. today we are honored to have not just one young person but several young people on the program today. it is certainly a tribute to the work and legacy of so many people that have gone on before us. 50 years ago today, in a symbolic shadow of abraham lincoln my father stood in this very spot and declared to this nation his dream to let freedom ring all the people being manacled by a system of discrimination. he commissioned us to go back to our various cities, towns, hamlets, states and villages and

let freedom ring. the reverberation of the sound of that freedom message has amplified and echoed since 1963 through the decades and coast to coast throughout this nation and even around the world. and as we are summoned again back to these hallowed grounds to send out a clarion call to let freedom ring. since that time, as a result of the civil rights act of 1964, voting rights act of 1965, the fair housing act of 1968, we have witnessed great strides toward freedom for all regardless of race, color, gender, relying, national origin, disability, class or sexual orientation. 50 years later in this year of jubilee, we are standing once

again in the shadow of that great emancipator, having been summoned to these hallowed grounds to reverberate the message of that great liberate liberator.e great for there is a remnant from 1963, congressman lewis, ambassador young, that still remain who has come to bequeath that message of freedom it a new generation of people who must now carry that message in their towns, their community. amongst their tribes and amongst their nations of the world. we must keep the sound and the message of freedom and justice going. it was my mother as has been said previously coretta scott king who in fact 30 years ago assembled a coalition of conscience that started us on this whole path of remembering

the anniversary of the march on washington. she reminded us that struggle is -- a neverds progress. ending process. freedom is never really wrong. you earn it and win in every generation. so away come once again to let freedom ring. because if freedom stops ringing then the sound will disappear and the atmosphere will be charged with something else. 50 years later we come once again to this special landing on the steps of the lincoln memorial to reflect, to renew, and to rejuvenate for the continued struggle of freedom and justice. for today, 50 years later, my friends, we are still crippled by practices and policies steeped in racial pride, hatred and hostility. some of which have us standing our ground rather than finding

common ground. we are still chained by economic disparity, income and class inequality, and conditions of poverty for many of god's children around this nation and the world. we are still bound by a cycle of civil unrest and inherent social biases in our nation and world that often times degenerate into violence and destruction, especially against women and children. we are at this landing and now we must break the cycle. the prophet king spoke the vision. he made it plain. and we must run with it in this generation. his prophetic vision and magnificent dream described the yearning of people all over the world to have the freedom to

prosper in life, wigs the right to pursue one's aspirations, -- which is the right to pursue one's app or -- aspirationspurposes, dreams, ,well-being, without oppressive, depressive, repressive practices, behaviors, laws and conditions that diminish one's dignity and denies one life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. the freedom to participate in government, which is the right to have a voice and a say in how you are represented, regulate and governed without threats of tyranny, disenfranchisement, exclusionary tactics and behavior and to have freedom to peacefully co-exist which is the right to be respected in one's self-hood, individuality and uniqueness without fear of intack, assault or abuse.

1967, my father asked thepoignant and critical question. where do we go from here? chaos or community? and we say with a resounding voice no to chaos, and yes to community. if we are going to rid ourselves of the chaos, then away must make -- we must make a necessary shift. nothing is more tragic than for us to fail to achieve new attitudes and new mental outlooks. we have an opportunity to reset the means by which we live, work and enjoy our lives. if we are going to continue to struggle of freedom and create true community we will have to be relentless in exposing, confronting and ridding ourselves of the mind set of pride and greed and selfishness and hate and lust and fear and idleness and lack of purpose and lack of love as my brother said for our neighbor. we must seize this moment. the dawning of a new day.

the emergence of a new generation who has postured to change the world through collaborative power. as i close, i call upon my brother by the name of nehemiah who was also in the midst of rebuilding a community and in the midst of rebuilding a community he brought the leaders, rumors and rest of the people together and told them that the work is great and large and we are widely separated one from another on the wall. but when you hear the sound of the trumpet and might i say we you hear the sound of the bells today, come to that spot and our god will fight with us. so, today we are going to let freedom ring all across this nation. when you hear the sound of the bell today, come to that spot

and our god will fight with us. today we are going to let freedom ring all across this nation. let freedom ring everywhere we go. if freedom is going to ring in libya, syria, egypt, florida, we must reach across the table, feed each other, and let freedom ring. [applause] >> in 1963, the church was bombed. the bell was saved. thanks to the church and william bell, that bell is here to help celebrate dr. king's legacy and to help celebrate dr. king's legacy and that day, let freedom ringlet freedom ring.

[bell struck] [applause] please welcome our next ♪erformer, heather headley. father ? help your children ? ? don't let them fall by the side ?

? teach them ? heavenove one another ? might find a place in our hearts if you want it you can[applause]

his love and power, his glory for ever and ever. ♪ glory to the power for ever and ever and ever and ever

♪ who can bring the love ♪ ♪ [applause]

>> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states of america. [applause] >> to the king family, who have sacrificed and inspired so much, to president clinton, president carter, vice president biden and jill, fellow americans -- five decades ago, today, americans

came to this honored place to lay claim to a promise made. we hold these truths to be self- evident, that all men are created equal. they are endowed by their creator, certain inalienable rights. among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. in 1963, almost 200 years after those words were set to paper, a full century after a great war was fought and emancipation proclaimed, that promise, those truths remained unmet.

and so they came by the thousands. from every corner of our country. men and women, young and old, blacks who long for freedom and whites who could no longer accept freedom for themselves while witnessing the subjugation of others. across the land, congregations sent them off with food and prayer. in the middle of the night, entire blocks of harlem came out to wish them well. with the few dollars they script from their labor -- skrimped from their labor, they set on buses.

those with less money hitchhiked or walked. they were seamstresses and steelworkers, students and teachers. maids and porters. they shared simple males and bumped -- meals and bunked together. on a hot summer day, they assembled here in our nation's capital under the shadow of the great emancipator to offer testimony of injustice. to petition their government for redress. to awaken america's long slumbering conscience. we rightly and best remember dr.

king's soaring oratory that day, how he gave hope to millions, offered a solvation pass -- his words belong to the ages, possessing a power unmatched in our time. we would do well to recall that day it self also belonged to those ordinary people, whose names never appeared in the history books. never got on tv. many had gone to segregated schools, sat at segregated lunch counters. they lived in towns where they could not vote, in cities where

their votes did not matter. there were couples in love who could not marry. soldiers who fought for freedom aboard -- abroad that they found denied to them at home. they had seen loved ones beaten, and children fire host. -- fire-hosed. they had every reason to lash out in anger, or resign themselves to a bitter fate. and yet, they chose a different path. in the face of hatred, they prayed for their tormentors. in the face of violence, they stood up and sat in with the moral force of nonviolence. willingly, they went to jail to

protest unjust laws. their cells swelling with the sounds of freedom songs. a lifetime of indignities that taught them that no man can take away the dignity and grace that god grants. they learned through hard experience what frederick douglass once taught, that freedom is not given, it must be won. discipline, persistence, and faith. that was the spirit they brought here that day. that was the spirit that young people like john lewis brought to that destination. that was the spirit that they carried with them like a torch back to their cities and neighborhoods.

that steady flame of conscience and courage that would sustain them through the campaigns to come, through boycotts and voter registration fraud. smaller marches, far from the spotlight. through the loss of four little girls in birmingham, and the agony of dallas and california and memphis. through setbacks and heartbreaks, that flame of justice flickered. it never died. because they kept marching, america changed. because they marched, the civil rights law was passed. because they marched, the voting

rights law was assigned. because they marched, doors of opportunity in education swung open so their daughters and sons could imagine a life for themselves beyond washing someone else's laundry or shining someone else's shoes. because they marched, city councils changed and state legislatures changed and congress changed. eventually the white house changed. [cheers and applause] because they marched, america became more free and more fair. not just for african-americans, but for women and latinos. asians and native americans. catholics, jews, and muslims. for gays, for americans with disabilities. america changed for you and for me.

the entire world drew strength from that example, whether it be young people who watched from the other side of an iron curtain and would eventually tear down that wall, or the young people inside south africa would eventually end the scourge of apartheid. [cheers and applause] those are the victories they won. with iron wills, and hope in their hearts, that is a transformation that they brought with each step of their well- worn shoes. that is the depth that i and millions of americans owe those maids, porters, secretaries. those white students who put

themselves in harms way, even though they didn't have to. those japanese-americans who recalled their own internment, those jewish americans who survived the holocaust. people who could have given up and given them, but kept on keeping on knowing that weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. [cheers and applause] on the battlefield of justice, men and women without rank or wealth or title or fame would liberate us all in ways that our children now take for granted. people of all colors and creeds live and learn and walk together, and fight alongside one another and love one another.

and judge one another by the content of our character in this greatest nation on earth. to dismiss the magnitude of this progress, to suggest as some sometimes do the little has changed -- that little has changed, that dishonors the courage and sacrifice sacrifice of those who paid the price to march. [cheers and applause] medgar eversjames chaney, andrew ,goodman, martin luther king, jr. -- they did not die in vain. their victory was great.

but we would dishonor those heroes as well to suggest that the work of this nation is somehow complete. the ark of the moral universe may bend towards justice, but it does not bend on its own. to secure the gains this country has made requires constant vigilance, not complacency. whether it is by challenging those who erect new barriers to the vote, or ensure that the scales of justice work equally for all in the criminal justice system -- it requires vigilance. [cheers and applause] we will suffer the occasional setback, but we will win these fights. this country has changed too

much. [cheers and applause] people of goodwill, regardless regardless of party, are too plentiful for those with ill will to change history's currents. in some ways, the securing of civil rights, voting rights, the eradication of legalized discrimination -- the very significance of these victories may have obscured the second goal of the march. for the men and women who gathered 50 years ago were not there in search of some abstract idea. they were there seeking jobs as well as justice.

not just the absence of oppression, but the presence of economic opportunity. [cheers and applause] for what does it profit a man, dr. king would ask, to sit at a counter if you can't afford the meal? this idea that one's liberty is linked to one's livelihood, that the pursuit of happiness requires the dignity of work, the skills to find work, decent pay, some measure of material security, this idea was not new. lincoln himself understood the declaration of independence in such terms that is a promise in due time, the weights should be lifted from the shoulders of all men, and that all should have an equal chance.

and dr. king explained that the goals of african-americans were identical to working people of all races. decent wages, fair working conditions, livable housing, old age security, health and welfare measures, conditions in which families can grow, have education for their children, respect in the community. what king was describing has been the dream of every american. it has what has lured for centuries new arrivals to our shores. the second dimension of economic opportunity, the chance to honest toil to advance one's station in life. the goals of 50 years ago have fallen short.

there have been examples of success that would have been unimaginable in black america half a century ago. this has been noted, as unemployment remains almost twice that of white unemployment. the gap in wealth between races has not lessened. it has grown. as president clinton indicated, the position of all working americans, regardless of color, has eroded, making the dream dr. king described even more elusive. over a decade, working americans of all races have seen their wages and incomes stagnant, as corporate profits soar and as the pay of a fortunate few explodes. upward mobility has become inequality has steadily

written over the debt -- risen over the decades. in too many communities across this country, the shadow of poverty casts a pall over our youth, their lives a fortress of substandard schools, inadequate health care, perennial violence. as we mark this anniversary, we must remind ourselves that the measure of progress for those who marched 50 years ago was not merely how many blacks could join the ranks of millionaires, it was whether this country would allow all people who are willing to work hard into the ranks of a middle-class life. [cheers and applause]

the test was not and never has been whether the doors of opportunity are cracked a bit wider for a few. it is whether our economic system provides a fair shot for many, for the black custodian and white steelworker. the immigrant dishwasher, and the native american veteran. to win that battle, to answer that call. this remains our great unfinished business. we should not fool ourselves. the task will not be easy. since 1963, the economy has changed. the twin forces of technology and global competition has subtracted those jobs that once provided a foothold into the middle class, reduce the bargaining power of american workers. our politics has suffered.

entrenched interests, those who benefit from an unjust status quo, resisted any government efforts to give working families a fair deal. an army of lobbyists argued that minimum wage increases or stronger labor laws or taxes on the wealthy who could afford just to fund public schools but all these things violated sound economic principles -- that all the things violated sound economic principles. we have been told that growing inequality was a price for a growing economy. the measure of a free market. that greed was good, and compassion ineffective, and those without jobs or health care had only themselves to blame. then there were those elected officials who found it useful to

practice the old politics of division, doing the best to convince middle-class americans of a great untruth, that government was somehow itself to blame for their growing economic insecurity. --at distant eurocrats were bureaucrats weretaking their hard-earned dollars to benefit -- bureaucrats were taking their hard-earned dollars to benefit others. there were times when some of us claiming to push for change lost our way. dollars to benefit -- the anguish of assassinations set off self-defeating rights -- riots. legitimate grievances against police brutality ended in excuse making for criminal behavior. racial politics could cut both ways.

as a transformative message of unity and brotherhood was --owned out by discrimination. drowned out by the language of recrimination. what had once been a call for equality of opportunity, the chance for all americans to work hard and get ahead, was too often framed as a mere desire for government support. as if we had no agency in our own liberation. the poverty was an excuse for not raising your child. all of that history is how progress stalled. that is how hope was diverted. it is how our country remained divided. the good news is, just as was true in 1963, we now have a choice.

we can continue down our current path, in which the gears of this great democracy grind to a halt and our children except a life of lower expectations, where politics is a zero-sum game, where if you do very well while struggling families of every race fight over shrugging economic pie. or we can have the courage to change. the march on washington teaches us that we are not trapped by the mistakes of history. we are masters of our fate. it also teaches us that the promise of this nation will only be kept when we work together. we will have to reignite the embers of empathy and fellow feeling, the coalition of conscience that found expression

in this place 50 years ago. i believe that spirit is there. that force inside each of us. i see it when a mother recognizes her own daughter in the face of a poor black child. i see it when the black youth think of his own grandfather in the dignified steps of an elderly white man. it is there when the nativeborn recognizes that striving spirit, when interracial couple connects the pain of a gay couple and experiences it as their own. that is were courage comes from. when we turn not from each other, or on each other, but towards one another and we find that we do not walk alone.

that is were courage comes from. -- where courage comes from. [cheers and applause] with that courage, we can stand together for good jobs and just wages. we can stand together for the right to health care in the richest nation on earth for every person. with that courage, we can stand together for the right of every child from the corners of anacostia to the hills of appalachia to get an education that serves the mind and catches the spirit and prepares them for the world that awaits them. [cheers and applause] with that courage, we can feed the hard-working and house the homeless and transform bleak wastelands of poverty into fields of commerce and promise. america, i know the road will be long, but i know we can get there.

we will stumble, but i know we will get back up. that is how a movement happens. that is how history bands. -- bends. that is when someone says, come that's when somebody is faint of heart and tells the other, on, we are marching. there is a reason why so many who marched that day and in the days to come were young. the young are unconstrained by fear. unconstrained by the conventions of what is. they dare to dream differently, to imagine something better. i'm convinced that same imagination, the same hunger of purpose serves in this generation. we might not face the same dangers as 1963, but the fierce urgency of now remains.

we may never duplicate the swelling crowds, the dazzling procession. no one can match king's brilliance. but the same claim that lifted the heart of all who are willing to take that step for justice, i -- i that claim remains. know that flame remains. the tireless teacher who gets to class early and stays late and dips into her own pocket to buy supplies because she believes that every child is her charge, she is marching. [cheers and applause] that successful businessman who doesn't have to, but pays his workers a fair wage and then offers a shot to a man, maybe an ex-con, who is down on his luck, he is marching. [cheers and applause] the mother who pours her love into her daughter so she grows up with the confidence to walk through the same doors as anybody's son, she's marching.

[cheers and applause] the father who realizes the most important job he will ever have is raising his buoyant right,-- raising his oil righteven he did not have a ,father, especially if you did not have a father at home, -- boy right, even if he did not have a father, especially if you did not have a father at home, he is marching. [cheers and applause] the battle scarred veteransto keep serving their country when they come home, they are marching. [cheers and applause] everyone who realizes what those glorious patriots knew on that day, the change does not come from washington am a but to washington -- washington, but to washington. we, the people, who take on the mantle of citizenship, you are marching. [cheers and applause] that is the lesson of our past. that is the promise of tomorrow. in the face of impossible odds,

people who love their country can change it. when millions of americans of every race, every faith and every station can join together in a spirit of brotherhood, those mountains will be made low and those rough places will be made plain and those crooked places, they straighten out towards grace. we will vindicate the faith of those who sacrifice so much and live up to the true meaning of our creed as one nation under god, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. ♪cheers and applause]

>♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ [applause] ♪ ♪

♪ america america where people dream we are here to fight for america america, the land of the free from the ashes of america, america the land that i love

pray that god bless america america safe from above america, oh, america >> america america >> shining america ,merica >> red, white, and blue, america

liberty lady we thank you, america america america america america ♪ america ♪ america

♪ america ♪ america ♪ america the free ♪ !merica ♪

>> >> one day after the 50th anniversary of the march on washington, and double ac president will speak at the national press club. he is expected to discuss the trayvon martin case and stand your ground laws. live coverage today at1 p.m. eastern here on c-span the u.s. chamber of commerce holds its annual labor day briefing today to discuss the group's top economic issues for businesses. we will be live from their headquarters in washington, dc starting at 10 a.m. eastern on he sees -- on c-span. of there are several types bullying that the left loves to engage in and their favorite is racial leaving. the reason for that is that the

left philosophy is based almost solely and completely at this point on the idea that they stand up for victimized groups. everything they do is to stand up on behalf of some victimized minority, lacks, jews, gays, women. what that means is that we oppose their policies, by necessity necessity, the logic gays, hate blacks, jews, women and that is the philosophy they trot out. >> the energy -- the editor at will bebreitbart .com live at noon eastern. that is sunday. the book tv book club returns in september. read the book and engage in our facebook page and twitter.

>> one of the most fun times i've ever had -- it was 2006 and it looked like democrats were really going to take back over the house and it was looking bad for republicans area vice president cheney's office called and wondered if we could have breakfast with him. we went over to his residence and had breakfast with him. i had met him before but i did not know him. it is unbelievable how much he knew about -- he had been to so many of these districts over the years as one of the republican leaders of the house. basically, he was asking us how bad is this and we were saying ,yep, it's pretty bad. it is fun when you get to do that or talk to various caucuses on both side and getting limbs of the inside and the players. >> with more than 30 years as a

political analyst, charlie cook has tracked every congressional race since 1984. see the rest of this interview sunday night on c-span. co coming up on c-span, washington journal" is live. then workplace priorities in a speech by the naacp president. later at 7 p.m. eastern, a town hall meeting on defunding the president's health care law. in 45 minutes, former north dakota senator byron dorgan talks about the situation in syria, cybersecurity, and his new novel, "gridlock." ther, the impact of

keystone oil pipeline on economy and safety concerns. mccown, a is brigham safety administered -- a safety official for the bush and administration. later, efforts to fight fraud. host: good morning. senior obama officials are expected to brief congressional leaders today on syria come this is over 100 members of congress have sent a letter to the president saying i need congressional approval. reportedly, u.n. inspectors currently in this area are set to leave by saturday morning. meanwhile, internationally, british prime minister david cameron expecting a vote at parliament to authorize military action in zero, but concerns from his labor -- but