Restoring Honor

As most of us are aware, Saturday August 28th was the 47th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's famous "I Have a Dream" speech. This year this date was shared with a rally called the "Restoring Honor Rally." The rally was Set up and organized by Fox News favorite Glenn Beck who claims that it was not to be a political movement, but simply to honor America's military members and those "who embody our nation's founding principles of integrity, truth and honor."

Many different speakers were there to pay tribute to the men an women of the military. Among these speakers was former Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin. She assured the crowd that she was not there to speak as a politician, "but something much more. I've been asked to speak as the mother of a soldier and I am proud of that distinction. Say what you want to say about me, but I raised a combat vet and you can't take that away from me."

Those who attended the rally said that it was a very peaceful atmosphere. It was not based on political issues and very little political aggression was showed among the crowd. There were those however who criticized that Glenn Beck's choice to hold the rally on the anniversary of the "I Have a Dream Speech" was disrespectful to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Some called the rally an anti-government movement advocating states' rights. Rev. Jesse Jackson told reporters that Beck was mimicking King and "humiliating the tradition." Glenn Beck claimed that he had no idea that when he announced the date for the rally back in  May that he had chosen the anniversary of the famous speech.

I do not understand why people are set on believing that the only goal of was to disrespect Rev. Martin Luther King. I believe this mainly because of the fact that a well known republican set up the rally which opens the door for political attacks and arguments. Alveda King, the niece of Rev. King assured the crowd that, "If Uncle Martin could be here today, he would sure commend us of giving honor where honor is due."

Even with this said, accusations of the rally being an irresponsible move and pushing "The structural breakdown of a strong national government," were still flying. But I believe that people are missing the point of the rally. It is to restore honor to America, not tear her down with racism or blind accusations. "Whites don't own Abraham Lincoln. Blacks don't own Martin Luther King. Those are American icons, American ideas, and we should just talk about character, and that's really what this event is about. It's about honoring character," Glenn Beck explained. And I couldn't say it any better. We're not black or white, yellow or red, we are all American!