"I have a dream" has a special meaning to many in Michiana

SOUTH BEND, Ind.-- It was just 50 years ago when our country’s future was changed by one man with a big vision. We asked people in Michiana what “I have a dream” means to them.

In 1963 Martin Luther King came to South Bend to speak at Notre Dame. Over 3,500 people were in attendance at the Stepan Center.

We visited a salon in Granger where Marci Ullery reflected on how times have changed in those fifty years.

Ullery said, “It’s bittersweet to me. Of course I love Martin Luther King. I love the I have a dream speech, it always moves me to great tears. But we are only 50 years out from this being necessary. That is not a long time!”

She admits she didn’t know a single black person in her community decades ago.

She said her mother taught her about civil rights through the images they saw on TV.

Ullery said, “I remember her sitting me down in front of the television during Selma Alabama, the freedom riders, the lunch counters, to explain to me that this is what hate looked like.”

She says while progress has been made, a lot more can be done.

Ullery said, “We really haven’t come as far as we need to.”

Across town at Al's Barber Shop the same sentiment is felt by a barber who has lived in South Bend his whole life.

Phil Ingram said, “Change is always possible and hope can be the bridge to any type of success, as long as you have the right heart and the right mind and apply it.”

King fought for the major changes and now it's up to communities to fight for the minor injustices or racial issues they see on their own streets.

Ingram said, “And give your kids hope to know that no matter what turmoil you are going to face or what challenges come in front of you, you can still overcome if you learn to have a dream. And we got to learn how to have a dream.”