As the nation marked 40 years since the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., many in southwestern Connecticut reflected on what King would say about America in 2008.

Some say black youth suffers from a lack of leadership today. ?I think his time was cut short and no one of his magnitude took over and kept his legacy going,? Norwalk resident Donna Poulard says.

Dr. Yohuru Williams, co-director of the Black Studies Program at Fairfield University, says progress has been made on the civil rights front. He cites presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) as an example of that progress.

However, Williams says King would have a mixed diagnosis of race relations in America. ?I think Dr. King would be very proud of where we are in terms of how we relate to one another as people,? Williams says. He adds, ?I think he'd be disappointed in the way the government continues to fail to address the issues of economic inequality.?