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"The Audacity of Hope"
Speech delivered 27 July 2004, 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 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 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, While studying here, my father met my mother. She
was born in a town on the other side of the world, in 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
They're both passed away now. And yet, I know that
on this night they look down on me with great pride. They stand here -- And 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,
That is the true genius of America, a faith -- 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're measuring up to the legacy of our forbearers 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 4500 dollars 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 in -- 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 -- 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 They
know we can do better. And they want that choice.
(an excerpt from Barack Obama: 2004 Democratic National Convention Keynote Address) |
