Martin Luther King III spoke on behalf of the 2008 Democratic Party presidential nominee , Senator Barack Obama , at the Democratic National Convention on August 28 , 2008 . The event marked the 45th anniversary of the " I Have a Dream " speech and the first time an African American accepted the presidential nomination of a major party . King said his father would be " proud of Barack Obama , proud of the party that nominated him , and proud of the America that will elect him . " However , he also warned that his father 's dream would not be completely fulfilled even if Obama won the presidency , because the country was suffering from a poor health care system , education system , housing market and justice system , and that " we all have to roll up our sleeves and do work to ensure that the dream that he shared can be fulfilled . " On January 19 , 2009 , the Martin Luther King Jr. national holiday , King joined Obama in painting and refurbishing the Sasha Bruce Youthwork shelter for homeless teens in Northeast Washington for the nationwide day of community service
Democratic National Convention
2008 Democratic National Convention
Martin Luther King III