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Obama Video Clips > 2004-07-27 - DNC 2004 Keynote Address - Boston MA
2004 Democratic National Convention Keynote Address
by Barack Obama
Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much.
Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Dick Durbin. You make us all
proud.
On behalf of the great state of Illinois, crossroads of a nation, Land of
Lincoln, let me express my deepest gratitude for the privilege of addressing
this convention.
Tonight is a particular honor for me because let's face it my presence on
this stage is pretty unlikely. My father was a foreign student, born and raised
in a small village in Kenya. He grew up herding goats, went to school in a
tin-roof shack. His father my grandfather was a cook, a domestic servant to
the British.
But my grandfather had larger dreams for his son. Through hard work and
perseverance my father got a scholarship to study in a magical place, America,
that shone as a beacon of freedom and opportunity to so many who had come
before.
While studying here, my father met my mother. She was born in a town on the
other side of the world, in Kansas. Her father worked on oil rigs and farms
through most of the Depression. The day after Pearl Harbor, my grandfather
signed up for duty; joined Patton's army, marched across Europe. Back home, my
grandmother raised their baby and went to work on a bomber assembly line. After
the war, they studied on the G.I. Bill, bought a house through FHA, and later
moved west all the way to Hawaii, in search of opportunity.
And they, too, had big dreams for their daughter. A common dream, born of two
continents.
My parents shared not only an improbable love; they shared an abiding faith in
the possibilities of this nation. They would give me an African name, Barack, or
"blessed," believing that in a tolerant America, your name is no barrier to
success. They imagined me going to the best schools in the land, even though
they weren't rich, because in a generous America, you don't have to be rich to
achieve your potential.
They are both passed away now. And yet, I know that on this night they look down
on me with great pride.
I stand here today, grateful for the diversity of my heritage, aware that my
parents dreams live on in my two precious daughters. I stand here knowing that
my story is part of the larger American story, that I owe a debt to all of those
who came before me, and that in no other country on Earth is my story even
possible.
Tonight, we gather to affirm the greatness of our nation not because of the
height of our skyscrapers, or the power of our military, or the size of our
economy. Our pride is based on a very simple premise, summed up in a declaration
made over two hundred years ago: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that
all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of
Happiness."
That is the true genius of America a faith in simple dreams, an insistence on
small miracles. That we can tuck in our children at night and know that they are
fed and clothed and safe from harm. That we can say what we think, write what we
think, without hearing a sudden knock on the door. That we can have an idea and
start our own business without paying a bribe. That we can participate in the
political process without fear of retribution, and that our votes will be
counted at least, most of the time.*
This year, in this election, we are called to reaffirm our values and our
commitments, to hold them against a hard reality and see how we are measuring up
to the legacy of our forebears and the promise of future generations.
And, fellow Americans, Democrats, Republicans, Independents, I say to you
tonight: We have more work to do.
More work to do for the workers I met in Galesburg, Illinois, who are losing
their union jobs at the Maytag plant that's moving to Mexico, and now are having
to compete with their own children for jobs that pay seven bucks an hour. More
to do for the father that I met who was losing his job and choking back the
tears, wondering how he would pay $4,500 a month for the drugs his son needs
without the health benefits that he counted on. More to do for the young woman
in East St. Louis, and thousands more like her, who has the grades, has the
drive, has the will, but doesn't have the money to go to college.
Now, don't get me wrong. The people I meet in small towns and big cities, in
diners and office parks they don't expect government to solve all their
problems. They know they have to work hard to get ahead and they want to.
Go into the collar counties around Chicago, and people will tell you they don't
want their tax money wasted, by a welfare agency or by the Pentagon.
Go into any inner city neighborhood, and folks will tell you that government
alone can't teach our kids to learn they know that parents have to teach, that
children can't achieve unless we raise their expectations and turn off the
television sets and eradicate the slander that says a black youth with a book is
acting white. They know those things.
People don't expect government to solve all their problems. But they sense, deep
in their bones, that with just a slight change in priorities, we can make sure
that every child in America has a decent shot at life, and that the doors of
opportunity remain open to all.
They know we can do better. And they want that choice.
In this election, we offer that choice. Our party has chosen a man to lead us
who embodies the best this country has to offer. And that man is John Kerry.
John Kerry understands the ideals of community, faith, and service because
they've defined his life. From his heroic service in Vietnam, to his years as a
prosecutor and lieutenant governor, through two decades in the United States
Senate, he has devoted himself to this country. Again and again, we've seen him
make tough choices when easier ones were available.
His values and his record affirm what is best in us. John Kerry believes in
an America where hard work is rewarded. So instead of offering tax breaks to
companies shipping jobs overseas, he offers them to companies creating jobs here
at home.
John Kerry believes in an America where all Americans can afford the same health
coverage our politicians in Washington have for themselves.
John Kerry believes in energy independence, so we aren't held hostage to the
profits of oil companies, or the sabotage of foreign oil fields.
John Kerry believes in the Constitutional freedoms that have made our country
the envy of the world, and he will never sacrifice our basic liberties, nor use
faith as a wedge to divide us.
And John Kerry believes that in a dangerous world, war must be an option
sometimes, but it should never be the first option.
You know, a while back, I met a young man named Seamus in a VFW hall in East
Moline, Illinois. He was a good-looking kid six-two, six-three, clear-eyed,
with an easy smile. He told me he'd joined the Marines and was heading to Iraq
the following week. And as I listened to him explain why he'd enlisted, the
absolute faith he had in our country and its leaders, his devotion to duty and
service, I thought this young man was all that any of us might hope for in a
child. But then I asked myself: Are we serving Seamus as well as he is serving
us?
I thought of the 900 men and women sons and daughters, husbands and wives,
friends and neighbors, who won't be returning to their own hometowns. I thought
of the families I've met who were struggling to get by without a loved one's
full income, or whose loved ones had returned with a limb missing or nerves
shattered, but who still lacked long-term health benefits because they were
reservists.
When we send our young men and women into harm's way, we have a solemn
obligation not to fudge the numbers or shade the truth about why they're going,
to care for their families while they're gone, to tend to the soldiers upon
their return, and to never ever go to war without enough troops to win the war,
secure the peace, and earn the respect of the world.
Now, let me be clear. We have real enemies in the world. These enemies must be
found. They must be pursued. And they must be defeated.
John Kerry knows this. And just as Lieutenant Kerry did not hesitate to risk his
life to protect the men who served with him in Vietnam, President Kerry will not
hesitate one moment to use our military might to keep America safe and secure.
John Kerry believes in America. And he knows that it's not enough for just some
of us to prosper. For alongside our famous individualism, there's another
ingredient in the American saga: A belief that we're all connected as one
people.
If there is a child on the south side of Chicago who can't read, that matters to
me, even if it's not my child. If there's a senior citizen somewhere who can't
pay for their prescription drugs, and has to choose between medicine and the
rent, that makes my life poorer, even if it's not my grandparent. If there's an
Arab American family being rounded up without benefit of an attorney or due
process, that threatens my civil liberties.
It is that fundamental belief I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's
keeper that makes this country work. It's what allows us to pursue our
individual dreams and yet still come together as one American family.
E pluribus unum. "Out of many, one."
Now, even as we speak, there are those who are preparing to divide us: the spin
masters, the negative ad peddlers, who embrace the politics of anything goes.
Well, I say to them tonight, there is not a liberal America and a conservative
America there is the United States of America. There is not a black America
and a white America and Latino America and Asian America there's the United
States of America.
The pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into Red States and Blue States;
Red States for Republicans, Blue States for Democrats. But I've got news for
them, too: We worship an awesome God in the Blue States, and we don't like
federal agents poking around in our libraries in the Red States. We coach Little
League in the Blue States, and, yes, we've got some gay friends in the Red
States. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq and there are patriots
who supported the war in Iraq.
We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all
of us defending the United States of America.
In the end, that's what this election is about. Do we participate in a politics
of cynicism, or do we participate in a politics of hope?
John Kerry calls on us to hope. John Edwards calls on us to hope.
I'm not talking about blind optimism here the almost willful ignorance that
thinks unemployment will go away if we just don't think about it, or the health
care crisis will solve itself if we just ignore it. That's not what I'm talking
about. I'm talking about something more substantial.
It's the hope of slaves sitting around a fire singing freedom songs. The hope of
immigrants setting out for distant shores. The hope of a young naval lieutenant
bravely patrolling the Mekong Delta. The hope of a mill worker's son who dares
to defy the odds. The hope of a skinny kid with a funny name who believes that
America has a place for him, too.
Hope! Hope in the face of difficulty! Hope in the face of uncertainty! The
audacity of hope! In the end, that is God's greatest gift to us, the bedrock of
this nation. A belief in things not seen. A belief that there are better days
ahead.
I believe that we can give our middle class relief and provide working families
with a road to opportunity. I believe we can provide jobs to the jobless, homes
to the homeless, and reclaim young people in cities across America from violence
and despair. I believe that we have a righteous wind at our backs and that as we
stand on the crossroads of history, we can make the right choices, and meet the
challenges that face us.
America! Tonight, if you feel the same energy that I do, if you feel the same
urgency that I do, if you feel the same passion I do, if you feel the same
hopefulness that I do if we do what we must do, then I have no doubts that all
across the country, from Florida to Oregon, from Washington to Maine, the people
will rise up in November, and John Kerry will be sworn in as president, and John
Edwards will be sworn in as vice president, and this country will reclaim its
promise, and out of this long political darkness, a brighter day will come.
Thank you very much, everybody. God bless you. Thank you.