“I join my colleagues today in celebrating the life of a great man; a man whose life was unjustly cut short 40 years ago today, but whose legacy will forever impact millions of Americans of all races for generations to come. “Four decades ago, America lost Martin Luther King, Jr. to a coward’s bullet. But the gift he gave us soared and grew. That dream he described to us 40 years ago, not too far from this Capitol building, is stronger and bigger than ever before. As an Asian American I would not be here, were it not for the trail Dr. King blazed for me and many other of my colleagues. “His dream of a country in which the voices of people of all colors and ethnic backgrounds have the same resonance, is largely a reality. We have a long way to go before justice and equality are absolute in this land, but we have come very far since that fateful day when we lost him under the Memphis sky. “As a child of that era, I remember that day, and I still mourn for him. But just like the legendary phoenix, his ideals and dreams arose from his death to inspire me and millions of other young Americans. And in those 40 years we have come to learn that Dr. King’s vision is less a dream and more a reality. “I invite all of us to take a moment and reflect on Dr. King’s legacy; a legacy he bequeathed to all of us. “Thank you, Dr. King. Your life and teachings are a beacon for me.”