Monday is a day to remember civil rights, not just Martin Luther King Jr. The privileges and duties which accompany civil rights belong to everyone, not just Americans, but every human being. The honorary day exists because one man believed regular people could change the world in which they live.

When King fought for the rights of the African-American person, everyone listened. His “I Have a Dream” speech was so passionate that it is remembered as an important piece of American literature. King was an instrumental figure in the history of the United States. He was and will continue to be a guiding light by which American values are set.

On this day of freedom, one should remember all those who helped the fight for human rights—Abraham Lincoln, Harriet Tubman, Caesar Chavez, Malcolm X and many others.

With national stories coming across the wires of a black tourist being burned and left for dead while on a Florida vacation, it’s time America take time to remember where it’s been and to examine where it’s going.

To honor this day the way King would have wanted us to, we cannot be separate, but must unite in equality. We must reflect on what civil rights means to this, present day, America. Unification and a better understanding of one another is the only direction to go.

Coretta Scott King is pleading for no violence on this day of remembrance. It is a nice thought, but unrealistic. If people could control themselves and not be violent for one day, that would be a miracle in itself.

Martin Luther King is a symbol in and of himself. His memory must represent to us all that we must never stop trying to become one race—one people joined by a common dream.