47 years later there are finally signs that the “bad check” Dr. Martin Luther King referred to has been torn up and reissued in the form of peace, harmony and Barack Obama.

Still, it seems we aren’t all the way there as a people. We don’t seem to want to help each other like we would have back in the day.

Understandably, we live in the day of the hustler and everyone is out to get theirs. But that’s no way to build a nation.

The difference, I believe, is that once upon a time, we built ourselves up within a group. We helped each other and because of that unity, we were able to erect whole towns, whole communities, blocks and families that supported each other in more racially divided times than now.

The dream is still attainable, but we have to band together and go get it.

A wise man once told me, “Freedom ain’t free.”