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Read the excerpt from Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free.

Why does Dr. King’s allude to the Emancipation Proclamation in his speech?

A) The allusion indicates to the audience that enslaving people was always illegal in the United States.

B) The allusion reflects Dr. King’s importance since it refers to another important figure in American history: President Lincoln.

C) The allusion demonstrates Dr. King’s belief that equality was achieved with the Emancipation Proclamation.

D) The allusion reminds the audience that 100 years have passed since the Emancipation Proclamation, yet inequality still exists.

User Brandon Dixon
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1 Answer

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11 votes

Answer:

D - The allusion reminds the audience that 100 years have passed since the Emancipation Proclamation, yet inequality still exists.

Step-by-step explanation:

All of the other answer options do not make sense, they are incorrect.

What was the Emancipation Proclamation? President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, as the nation approached its third year of bloody civil war. The proclamation declared "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free."

A) The allusion indicates to the audience that enslaving people was always illegal in the United States. ---- This is not true. It was legal for a time.

B) The allusion reflects Dr. King’s importance since it refers to another important figure in American history: President Lincoln. ---- It does, but thats not why he reffered to it.

C) The allusion demonstrates Dr. King’s belief that equality was achieved with the Emancipation Proclamation. ---- This is incorrect. He clearly states that equality was NOT achieved by the emancipation proclamation.

Hope this help and you can understand it better! Have a great day!

User Joao  Vitorino
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