Black Enterprise Founder Earl G. Graves Sr. on The 40th Anniversary MLK Jr.

Earl G. Graves Sr., Founder & Publisher of black enterprise magazine, issued the following statement regarding the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.:

In his unforgettable I've Been to the Mountaintop speech, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, 'I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the promised land.' On April 4, 1968-the very next day-King's words proved heartbreakingly prophetic when he was felled by an assassin's bullet.

Dr. King never witnessed the progress that African Americans and the nation would make as a result of his faith and sacrifice-from the signing of the Civil Rights Act by President Lyndon Johnson to Sen. Barack Obama's historic presidential run. But as certain as King may have been about his own fate, he was even more convinced that the rest of his prophetic vision-justice, fairness, and equality for all Americans-would someday come to pass.

Today, someday seems closer than ever. Yes, America continues to be plagued by many of the ills King opposed, including racism; hatred; violence; economic inequality; and a costly, senseless war. However, we now take for granted accomplishments we previously only dared to hope for. Blacks are astronauts, world-class surgeons, Wall Street financiers, state governors, and CEOs of multinational companies. Hope for the future, belief in our limitless potential, and a sense of our collective destiny as Americans have all made a comeback-stirred up by the tidal wave of political engagement inspired by Obama. In fact, thanks to the historic presidential campaigns of Obama and Sen. Hillary Clinton, for the first time in the nation's history we can tell our children-all of our children-that they can dare to be anything, even the President, and really believe it in our own hearts.

Given all that he sacrificed, we now recognize that King's push for the ultimate triumph of justice, righteousness, and equality was not in vain.

Earl G. Graves Sr. is a nationally recognized authority on black business development and the founder, chairman, and publisher of BLACK ENTERPRISE magazine, a business-service publication providing 3.9 million readers with information on entrepreneurship, careers, and financial management. Author of the autobiographical How to Succeed in Business Without Being White, Graves received the 84th NAACP Spingarn Medal in 1999, the highest achievement award for African Americans.

In 2004 Graves was honored with the Business Pioneer Award from the 50th Anniversary Commemoration Committee for Brown v. Board of Education. And in 2007, he was inducted into the U.S. Business Hall of Fame, which recognizes the contributions of the nation's most distinguished corporate professionals who have enriched the economy and inspired young people to pursue excellence in business and in life.