For the 2013 Martin Luther King Oratorical Contest

by A.R.M.

When I was younger, I used to believe that right was right and wrong was wrong. I believed that time was two hands spinning is circles. Until I heard of a man who believed that he could change people and how they feel about America. He showed them that they are somebody, not just another person on the side of the road.

This man's name was Mather Luther King Junior. When he said his speech "I had a Dream," he did not think about the time or place to say his speech. He just thought about the people. He didn't think of the actual day or month or season. He just did what was right.

Martin Luther King said, "We are now faced with the fact, my friends, that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with a lost opportunity. The tide in the affairs of men does not remain at flood -- it ebbs. We may cry out desperately for time to pause in her passage, but time is adamant to every plea and rushes on. Over the bleached bones and jumbled residues of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words, 'Too late.'"

If you wait for the right time, you might lose your chance to do the right thing. For example, someone may be getting beaten in front of you, and you're waiting to do something about it, but you have to do something now. When people do something right, they don't think about the right time. All they think is, "This guy is being hurt. I can't just stand here and watch him get beaten to the ground."

Martin Luther King Jr. saw African American people getting beaten, their houses getting burned, and their children being segregated in schools. He thought African Americans were equal. They just looked different. Because of his speech, many people started to think, "If we don't do anything about this we may lose everything we have." He affected people by what he said, and he didn't wait for a specific time.

Like Kevin Heath said, "A true hero is not someone who thinks about doing what is right, but one that simply does what is right without thinking."

I believe that there is no right time. It is always the right time to do the right thing.