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Ramiya Jaswal

Professor Hellmers

English 1201 Online

26 March, 2017

Summary of Barack Obamas Speech on the 50th Anniversary of the march on Washington

On August 28, 2013, President Barack Obama delivered his speech on the 50th

anniversary of the original march on Washington by Martin Luther King Jr. and his supporters, at

the Lincoln Memorial. He had a lot to remind his present audience about the original march and

a lot to add from his own opinion. The main points that the president mentioned throughout his

whole speech were the purpose of original march and speech given by Martin Luther King Jr,

equal rights, and that still till today equality among all Americans has still not been reached.

President Obama began his speech by stating his first point which was that the purpose of the

original march was because the part of the constitution that stated that all men are created equal

still had not been fully done by our fellow Americans. He then went on by describing the

diversity of the crowd that came from all over the U.S. to the original march and to hear Martin

Luther King Jr. give voice to those who were afraid and those who wanted to make a change. He

stated how the white Americans that participated in the march joined their fellow black men and

woman because they were fed up of the fact that they had all the freedoms but other Americans

did not. President Obama wanted his audience that was present in front him to know that the

original speech given by Martin Luther King Jr. was not only for those who were segregated

against but it was also for the average people who didnt have any problems and had all their

freedoms. He pointed out that some of the people who attended the march had to deal with things
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such as segregated schools/ eating places, or living in towns and cities in which they could not

vote, or couples who couldnt marry each other because of skin color, lastly soldiers who fought

TOGETHER for freedoms abroad that were not given to them at home. President Obama then

summed up the beginning of his speech by reminding his audiance that no matter what wrongs

were done against the people of that time they still chose not to be hostile and violent. He stated

how the people of that time had to go through tragic situations and events to make a change in

this country. President Obama stated how the generation of present day take advantage of certain

freedoms that were given to them and take them for granted. He also pointed out how some say

that nothing has changed today from the time the original speech was given and that this

statement puts our ancestors hard work down the drain. Another point that President Obama

made was that the speech given my Martin Luther King Jr. was not only for the advantage of the

black people it was for everybody that called America their home. He noted how all of us fellow

Americans need to support more fair wages to make the country of America a better place for

everyone no matter the race. President Obama reminded the audience that young will be the one

to make a change because they are not held back by the past and are inspired to make change.

His final point was that it is up to the people themselves to make a change and to change our

government.
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Work Cited

Staff, Washington Post. "FULL TRANSCRIPT: President Obama's Speech on the 50th
Anniversary of the March on Washington." The Washington Post. WP Company, 28 Aug. 2013.
Web. 26 Mar. 2017.