In honor of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. — and Louisville as a city in flux (and because he mentions Muhammad Ali) — his "Your Life's Blueprint" speech from 1967 to a group of students in Philadelphia seems especially poignant. The city of Louisville moved through some of its darkest days over the last few years, particularly on the issue of civil and human rights. In 2020, our city set the tone for a nation of protests and new civil rights movements.
Where will we come out on the other side of that?
In this speech, Dr. King asks us to consider what and how we want to live our lives. He also asks us to be proud of who and what we are.
So I invite you to watch this speech but also ask you to consider, "What is Louisville 2024?" and "Where does our city need to go moving forward?"
Be a bush if you can’t be a tree. If you can’t be a highway, just be a trail. If you can’t be a sun, be a star. For it isn’t by size that you win or fail. Be the best of whatever you are.—Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
