What allusions does Martin Luther King make to the Declaration of Independence in his "I Have a Dream" speech? How do they advance his argument?

Early in
the speech, King directly mentions the Declaration of Independence, which, along with the
Constitution, he describes as a "promissory note." He means that when the United
States came into being, its founders made a promise to the American people that the new
government would be one where all men were created equal:

This note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

So in a
sense, this "promise" made by the Declaration of Independence is the concept around
which the entire speech is framed. King goes on to say that for African Americans, the
Declaration has been a "bad check," one which they have arrived at Washington to urge
the nation to cash. So the first part of the speech, which King delivered directly from prepared
remarks, was organized around a direct reference and consistent allusions to the Declaration of
Independence as a "promissory note." When King picks up the more famous "I Have a
Dream"...

href="https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/mlk01.asp">https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/mlk01.asp