Obama: King’s dream partly met, still unfulfilled and challenges remain

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is claiming his place in Martin Luther King’s 50-year-old dream, holding himself up as a symbol of the change King envisioned. But he also pointed to America’s lingering economic disparities as evidence that King’s hopes remain unfulfilled.

Obama spoke at Lincoln Memorial Wednesday on the 50th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington. With Biblical references and the cadences of a preacher, Obama used the refrain, quote, “because they marched,” as he recited the achievements of the civil rights movement.

Laws changed, legislatures changed and even the White House changed, Obama said. But he says income inequality, troubled inner cities and stagnant wages amid growing corporate profits show challenges that remain.