“I have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream,” declared Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to the massive crowd gathered below. In spite of being maligned, attacked and jailed, King knew there was something good and noble about the dream of those early pilgrims and Founders who came to these shores seeking individual freedom and religious liberty. Bernie Sanders, by way of contrast, has trashed America as being "racist from top to bottom," even though he has never personally experienced racism. Unlike Dr. King, Sanders seems to find little good in America, but much to praise in communist regimes such as Cuba, Nicauragua and the Old Soviet Union. The difference in Dr. King and Sanders probably speaks of personal character as much as their differing worldviews.
Dr. King Wanted to Recapture the Original American Dream
In his, “I Have a Dream” speech, King made it clear that he had come to Washington D.C. that day, not to trash and condemn America, but to challenge her to live up to that original dream of individual freedom and justice for all. He challenged America that day, not to dispense with her founding documents, but to live up to them. He said,
When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
Then quoting from the Declaration of Independence, he proclaimed,
I have a dream that one day 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” (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 121-22).
Showing that he understood these freedoms to have roots in the country’s Christian origins, Dr. King, who was a devout Christian, went on to say that he had a dream that one day all Americans—whether white or black—would be able to sing together the words of that Christian, patriotic hymn,
My country 'tis of Thee,
Sweet land of liberty, of Thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the Pilgrim's pride,
Land of the Pilgrim's pride,
From every mountainside,
Let freedom ring!
Dr. King’s Dream Would Not Fit a Socialist Agenda
Dr. King obviously rcognzied that there was an original American dream, not yet realized by everyone, but noble and worth fighting for. How unlike so many today on the Left who insist that America is evil and racist at its core and in need of fundamental change. As mentioned above, Bernie Sanders has condemned America and expressed admiration for Marxist regimes in Cuba, Nicaragua and the old Soviet Union. He would like to implement many of their socialist policies in the U.S. if he is elected president.
Dr. King would vehemently disagree. He understood that the Soviet Union, based on Marxist ideology, was oppressive and anti-Christian at its very core. In a speech, just before his assassination, he spoke of how he could understand the denial of rights if he were in China or Russia or some other totalitarian regime. But this was America! He then quoted from the Bill of Rights and said, "All we say to America is 'be true to what you have put on paper.'"
Dr. King must have understood at least some of the facts that are documented in my latest book, 1726. In this book, I document how that original American dream, to which Dr. King was committed, came forth. I show the impact of the Great Awakening on Colonial America and document how it had a direct bearing on the founding of this nation. I also show how this Awakening produced an anti-slavery movement and had a direct bearing on the abolition of slavery on this continent.
Dr. King must have known this. This is why he quotes extensively from America’s founding documents; documents that do not mention slavery and contain no classifications based on race or skin color.
Keeping race out of the Constitution was purposeful, for as James Madison explained, “The Convention thought it wrong to admit in the Constitution the idea that there could be property in men” (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 123).
America’s Founders Turn Against Slavery
Indeed, so powerful was the Great Awakening and the abolition movement that it produced, that by the time of America’s founding virtually every Founder had turned against slavery, admitting that it was sinful and wrong. The brilliant black scholar, Dr. Thomas Sowell, has written in this regard,
Among those who turned against slavery in the 18th century were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry and other American leaders. You could research all of 18th century Africa or Asia or the Middle East without finding any comparable rejection of slavery there (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 90).
One of America’s founders, Dr. Benjamin Rush of Philadelphia, called slavery a “hydra sin” and helped found the nation’s first abolition society in that city. He also called on the preachers of America to attack slavery in their preaching.
As a result of the Great Awakening, virtually every Founder came to agree with John Adams, the nation’s second president, who wrote,
As a result of the Great Awakening, virtually every Founder came to agree with John Adams, the nation’s second president, who wrote,
Every measure of prudence . . . ought to be assumed for the eventual total extirpation of slavery from the United States. I have throughout my whole life held the practice of slavery in abhorrence (Hyatt, 1726:The Year that Defined America, 101).
As a result of the Awakening and being confronted with the inconsistency of slavery with Christian faith, George Washington freed his slaves. In a conversation with John Bernard concerning emancipation, Washington declared,
Not only do I pray for it, on the score of human dignity, I clearly foresee that nothing but the rooting out of slavery can perpetuate the existence of our union by consolidating it in a common bond of principle (Hyatt, 1726: The Year thatDefined America, 103).
Even those Founders who did not free their slaves publicly admitted that slavery was sinful and would bring God’s judgement on the nation. It was in the context of slavery being allowed to continue in the South that Thomas Jefferson warned,
God who gave us life, gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are a gift from God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just and that His justice cannot sleep forever (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 125).
Bernie Sanders Does Not Share Dr. King’s Dream
Yes, America had experienced spiritual awakening at the time of her founding, and a great abolition movement was underway. Although it would take a Second Great Awakening, a Great Prayer Awakening and a Civil War, America finally rid herself of slavery.
But make no mistake! The moral resolve to sacrifice a million of her citizens and a large portion of her economy to rid herself of that evil, was rooted in that original American dream of which Dr. King spoke and with which he identified. “I still have a dream,” he said, “And it is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.”
Bernie Sanders obviously does not share this dream. He and others would replace Dr. King’s dream with a utopian socialist vision that has destroyed individual freedom and religious liberty everywhere it has been imposed.
This is why Dr. King would be opposed to Bernie Sanders and his socialist vision for America.
This article is derived from Dr. Eddie Hyatt's latest book, 1726: The Year that Defined America, available from Amazon and his website at www.eddiehyatt.com. Dr. Hyatt is an author, teacher, revivalist and ordained minister. He has founded the "1726 Project" with the goal of informing America of her roots in spiritual awakening and calling for prayer for another Great Awakening across the land,
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