Martin’s Non-Violent Fight For Equality

Every year, the Breakthrough Project sponsors an essay contest for fifthand sixth-grade students centered around the theme for the Celebration of Unity. This year, students were asked to write about Martin Luther King Jr.’s quote, “The time is always right to do what is right” in the context of 1960 and today. Have they even been in a situation where doing the right thing was difficult and ignoring the problem was easier? Following is the winning fifth-grade entry, written by Lawrence Elementary student Ella Leffler and titled “Martin’s Non-Violent Fight For Equality.”

After 90 years, Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream has not fully come true. Problems are still going on racially. “The time is always right to do what is right,” as Martin said. Now’s the time to change the way things are today, to help future generations tomorrow.

In the 1960’s, Martin’s words were a beacon of hope to the black community. MLK held peaceful marches and made speeches against unfair laws for black people. Such laws included how if a white person wanted to sit in a full bus, a black person would have to give their seat no matter how tired they were. Another unfair laws that black people couldn’t drink from the same fountain as white people. One of the most famous marches and speeches of his were, The March on Washington and, I Have a Dream. Martin’s dream was that one day, his for little children live in a nation where they would not be judged by the color of their skin but the content of their heart. Laws were eventually changed, but some people’s hearts and opinions didn’t. In this day and age, people still have radical views of people who are not like them, but they don’t get that all of our differences makes every individual unique.

Martin’s words from the past can help present-day America. Because of our President, people who have lived here for years without an American citizenship are getting deported back to the countries they fled. People who came to America in order to get away from games, violence, and with the hope of a chance to have an overall better life are being forced to leave. At the border, children of all ages are getting separated from the families and put into the highly unsanitary detention centers. Imagine, being a young child alone in a strange building, crying your eyes out, wondering if your parent would ever come back. That is what is happening to children right now. If Martin were here today, he would speak out for all of those who don’t have a voice in our America and stand up to all of the President‘s policies.

I have been in a situation that was hard for me to do the right thing once. I was friends with two girls in second grade. One of them I knew since kindergarten while the other I never known before. Someone in the trio would always be on the outs, and that would usually be me, but one day, my old friend in the other girl got in a big fight about something. My new “friend” came up to me and told me that we should play a game and see how much fun we were having, and when my old friend came over, we shouldn’t let her play. I’m glad I had enough common sense at that age to realize what she wanted to do was wrong. I remembered all the horrible things she has said and done to me, and I didn’t want someone else to then feel bad about themselves, so I told her I would never hurt someone like that for the sake of her revenge and left her to hang out with my real friends instead. I knew in order to keep a good friend, I’d have to make an enemy, but it was worth it. My old friend realized that she shouldn’t have gone along with the other one’s drama. I’m proud of what I did in second grade now, my old friend and I are still friends even though she moved away. By doing what I did, I learned what a true friend really is. It wasn’t easy to stand up for what I knew was right, but I’m glad I did.

Martin’s word still relate today. People are still getting judged by the color of the skin, but also where they were born and how they look. Now is the time to change how we think about each other. We are all different, but that’s what makes each individual so unique.