  Jackie Martin
Former United Way of Houston President
J.S. Martin Associates
“We may have all come on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now.” ”We must learn to live together as brothers, or we are going to perish together as fools.” ”I look forward confidently to the day when all who work for a living will be one with no thought to their separateness as Negroes, Jews, Italians or any other distinctions. This will be the day when we bring into full realization the American dream — a dream yet unfulfilled. A dream of equality of opportunity, of privilege and property widely distributed; a dream of a land where men will not take necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few; a dream of a land where men will not argue that the color of a man’s skin determines the content of his character; a dream of a nation where all our gifts and resources are held not for ourselves alone, but as instruments of service for the rest of humanity; the dream of a country where every man will respect the dignity and worth of the human personality.”
“What’s on the surface, what people look like, that doesn’t determine who they are. And that the power and strength of diversity, the ability of people from everywhere…they’re just Americans. All of us can work together and join together to create a better country.” Source: Hawaii Speech, 2008 “Given the increasing diversity of America’s population, the dangers of sectarianism have never been greater. Whatever we once were, we are no longer just a Christian nation; we are also a Jewish nation, a Muslim nation, a Buddhist nation, a Hindu nation, and a nation of nonbelievers.” Source: Call to Renewal Keynote Address  The interpretation of these truths is given from a community perspective as local leaders were asked “How do the quotes of these two men impact our race, our nation and our world? |
