When the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. announced his dream from atop the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, it seemed impossibly idealistic.
In the midsts of the deeply ingrained racism of the early 1960s, he dreamt that his “four little children would one day live in a nation where they will be judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”
In honoring Dr. King today, let us remember what he showed us — that even the wildest dreams for a better world when born in love and nurtured with determination, perseverance, and prayer, will one day be made real.
In Haiti, the people, communities, and partners we work with – like the volunteer Child Rights Activists in this photo – are committed to dreams that seem equally daring.
They dream of a day when every child can go to a good school and no child becomes enslaved. They dream of a day when no woman or child lives in fear of domestic or sexual violence. They dream of a day when even the poorest parents can find dignified work and feed their children without handouts.
The unflinching commitment of people like you makes it possible for us to serve as allies to the powerful movements they are building in pursuit of these dreams.
Because of your commitment we and our partners in Haiti have:
- organized a growing network of 40,000 Child Rights Activists and more than 900 adult survivors of child slavery committed to keeping every childfree and safe;
- trained more than 50,000 women and men and girls and boys in how to prevent violence against women and girls and balance power;
- trained teachers at more than 50 rural schools in nonviolent, participatory, native language classroom management that inspires students’ creativity, curiosity, and leadership; and,
- equipped 229 of the very poorest families in nine rural communities with the skills and assets they need to earn a dignified living, overcome hunger, begin saving and keep their children at home and in school.
Dr. King knew how the power of a dream and the commitment we make to it can fortify us in the face of impossible odds.
You fortify us in ways just as profound, and we are grateful for it every day.
