hansbury's is a cautionary tale. a dream deferred doesn't just dry up like a raisin in the sun, but instead could just explode. moreover, the consequences of deferred dreams are not always immediate. they can extend decades into the future with consequences of generations to come. for over 50 years, audiences have focused on african-americans' clashes with the world outside their homes. her ability to see into the future of conflicts inside the home is just as compelling. hansbury advises us of the relationship between the problem outside and those conflicts inside. in the years since her play, i have come to fully appreciate how the two work together to enhance or to impede our chances at real equality. and so i look at hansbury's play, and i see not only the tension that she is raising, the tension between african-americans and white americans, but also it foretells of the tensions between women and men and how equality will be defined. what she signals is that that clash,ing unless we can resolve that clash within