The National Dental Association Civil Rights Luncheon

3/, Iе/ 9 6 EXCERPTS FROM REMARKS MADE TO THE NATIONAL DENTAL ASSOCIATION CIVIL RIGHTS LUNCHEON 12:00 P.M. JULY 31, 1990 ADAM'S MARK HOTEL HOUSTON, TEXAS BY GOVERNOR L. DOUGLAS WILDER Thank you. I'm pleased to have this opportunity to be with you this afternoon. I'm glad to say this is one of the few times that I won ' t be needing novocaine to enjoy the company of dentists. The timing could not be more fitting for the theme of today's luncheon. For as we speak, the whirlwinds of heated debate over passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1990 are whipping through seats of power in Washington and across communities throughout the land. Each of us is grateful that countless individuals have made tremendous sacrifices over several hundred years for this nation to have arrived at this moment. Throughout the journey, many names and deeds have been emblazoned in the annals of history, others never recorded or even known. And yet, all who have lifted their voices and cried out against that which is wrong have played no small role in carrying forth the burden and the glory of the cause. And as a result of the determination of these stalwarts who would not be silenced, we have travelled far - especially in the last several decades - on that long and winding path to freedom, justice, and equality for all. Throughout this quest, fraught with danger and daily indignities, we have encountered. .. and have overcome. .. .many hurdles of intolerance and indifference - barriers which often seemed without end. One would be cleared and knocked from the path of future generations, only to reveal a chain of others standing in our way - segregation of public facilities, separate but not equal classrooms, literacy tests, poll taxes, discrimination in the housing market and in the workplace. .. .to name but a handful. And yet, although we were forced to trudge along for generations in the perpetual darkness of injustice and discrimination, the light from within has forever shone, sustaining our spirit, guiding us to where we are today. Along the way, the tolls have been high; but the dreams and the ideals higher still.