Nearly 58 years ago, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his infamous “I Have A Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. On Monday, students in Limestone County shared just how far they thought America had come to realizing King’s dream and how much work was still left to do.

The students were each winners in the 16th Annual Athens-Limestone Martin Luther King Jr. Art and Essay Contest, organized each year by the Limestone NAACP in partnership with the City of Athens and Limestone County. In a virtual program hosted Monday via Zoom, students discussed their creative works.

Baani Makhija, a second-grader from iAcademy at Athens Elementary, wrote in her essay that based on her experiences, King’s dream is already becoming real.

“The color of our skin does not matter,” she said. “We are all friends.”

Makhija said watching the first female vice president be elected and the first female superintendent of Athens City Schools be selected has given her additional hope for the future. Thanks to their work and the work of King, Makhija wrote in her essay that she believes dreams can and do come true, and she looks forward to the first female president being elected in her lifetime.

Other students painted a less rosy picture of the current state of affairs. Kurt Marshall said some of King’s dream has come true, but injustice continues to exist, even in Athens.

“We still have not been treated fairly,” Marshall, a fourth grader at Athens Renaissance, wrote in his essay. “For example, I had a friend say his parents would not let me come to his house because I was Black. This made me feel mad and sad.”

He said all injustices make him feel that way, “but also mad and upset because Martin Luther King Jr. had to go through all that hatred and we still have so much hatred in America today.” He said he hopes one day that King’s dream will be fully realized and it will be OK for children to join hands with those of other races.

Tori White, a fourth grader at Athens Intermediate, wondered just how much more could have been achieved had King not been assassinated at age 39. King would have been 92 this year but was killed in Memphis less than five years after giving his “I Have A Dream” speech.

White and others wrote that despite the amount of work left to do in the fight against racial injustice, she believes King would have been proud of what has been accomplished so far.

Jerome Malone, who served alongside his wife as masters of ceremony for the virtual program, said it was moving to hear each student, and he expected they would accomplish great things in the future.

“I’m so moved,” Malone said. “I’m encouraged by the knowledge, the courage, the talent of these young people.”

Benard Simelton, president of the Alabama State Conference of the NAACP, said while King’s dream may not be realized yet, the students’ essays and artworks stirred belief that one day, it would be.

“We still have a faith,” Simelton said. “We are still working towards that dream.”

Winners

The following is a complete list of the art and essay winners in this year’s contest, provided by the event organizers:

• First place, grades 2–5, art — Tori White, fourth grade, Athens Intermediate School;

• Second place, grades 2–5, art — Easton Gough, third grade, Sugar Creek Elementary;

• Third place, grades 2–5, art — Hailey Vinson, fourth grade, Creekside Elementary;

• First place, grades 6–12, art — Emma Lovell, 10th grade, Athens Bible School;

• Second place, grades 6–12, art — Kyndall Crutcher, 12th grade, Athens High;

• Third place, grades 6–12, art — Madisyn Marshall, sixth grade, Athens Renaissance;

• First place, grades 2–3, essay — Baani Makhija, second grade, iAcademy at Athens Elementary School;

• First place, grades 4–5, essay — Kurt Marshall, fourth grade, Athens Renaissance;

• Second place, grades 4–5, essay — Tori White, fourth grade, Athens Intermediate;

• Third place, grades 4–5, essay — Giannah McKinnie, fifth grade, McKinnie Academy;

• First place, grades 6–8, essay — Torriente White II, sixth grade, Athens Middle School;

• Second place, grades 6–8, essay — Will Anderson, eighth grade;

• Third place, grades 6–8, essay — Madisyn Marshall, sixth grade, Athens Renaissance;

• First place, grades 9–12, essay — Hailee Braden, 10th grade, Clements High School; and

• Second place, grades 9–12, essay — Andreya Harris, 12th grade.