18th Wing commander offers thoughts on MLK observance

  • Published
  • By Brig. Gen. Ken Wilsbach
  • 18th Wing commnader
KADENA AIR BASE, Japan --  The attached remarks were to be given at the Martin Luther King Ceremony at Kadena Chapel 3 on Friday. When I began my remarks I was moved with emotion after hearing the presentation of the "I Have a Dream" Speech. While I diverted from the exact words of the prepared remarks, my point remained similar: We're doing pretty well in the U.S. Military with respect to equal opportunity, but we still have work to do. I urge everyone to lead in this area, because when all our team members are free to flourish we are better off for it. That holds true in the military as well as across our great nation.

Good morning. I'm honored and humbled to be here to be a part of this service. Today we honor Dr Martin Luther King Jr., a man who gave his life for the principles of freedom, justice and equality for all... a man who used the power of words to move mountains, to influence minds and to change hearts.

On an incredible summer day in August, 1963 in Washington D.C., Dr King eloquently announced to the world that he had a dream. In words that became ingrained in our national consciousness, he said:

"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."
"I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."

There was obviously much more to the speech itself, but these two statements really stick with me as I think about how far we have come as a nation and how far we have come as a military.

Sixty five years ago, African Americans who fought and bled on the battlefields, on the seas and in the skies during World War II were still treated like second class citizens and operated in units segregated from their white counterparts. This all began to change in 1948, when President Harry Truman signed Executive Order 9981 ordering the integration of the Armed Forces.

This far-reaching order put the US Military at the forefront of social change and opened up new doors for African Americans to achieve their piece of the American dream. It sent a message to all Americans that if you were willing to serve your nation and shed your blood defending it, then the color of your skin mattered less than the honor in your heart and the courage in your soul.

While the order could not fix years of unequal treatment for African American servicemen that preceded it, it paved the way for men like Chappie James, Benjamin O. Davis, Colin Powell and many others to succeed and to contribute to our nation in ways that racism and segregation had prevented for so many years.

Today, the military is a microcosm of society, and in many ways represents the embodiment of Dr King's dream of equality for all. Nearly 15 percent of our United States Air Force is African American, a figure slightly higher than the percentage of African Americans in the population at large.
Our Air Force is a place where men and women of all races, faiths and creeds can serve their nation and become a part of something greater than themselves.

Our Air Force is a place where opportunities are abundant, and the only limitations are those we place on ourselves.

Our service is a place where the only color I see as I lead the incredible Airmen of the 18th Wing is Air Force blue.

While I'm proud of how far we've come as a military, we all have a part to play to ensure that Dr King's legacy lives on and that our Air Force remains the home of equality and opportunity that it is today. As a nation, we've come a long way, but there's more progress to be made before we can say that Dr. King's dreams have been fully realized.

It is events like this where we must take a moment to reflect on where we were, how far we've come, and where we are headed. As we celebrate Dr King's life, we continue to stand in awe of the societal changes his incredible dream set in motion. His words and deeds continue to educate us, inspire us, and remind us that the train of progress must keep rolling.

Thank you for allowing me to share in this important event today. Thank you for your commitment to honoring Dr. King's legacy. And thank you for your service to our Air Force and our nation.