National
By Rev. Jesse L. Jackson
September 10, 2012
Nearly 50 million Americans now are in poverty. One in four children will grow up in impoverished households. Redressing poverty is a national emergency and a moral imperative. In our money-drenched political debate, the poor receive little attention. Yet they could be the key swing vote in this election.
Mitt Romney invoked the poor as part of his attack on Barack Obama's policies. But his own agenda features devastating cuts in basic support for the poor — Medicaid, food stamps, Head Start, aid to poor schools, public housing, training — to help pay for another round of corporate and personal tax cuts, largely pocketed by the very rich.
Democrats have historically been the advocates of the vulnerable. Social Security, the crown jewel of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal, is the nation's greatest anti-poverty program, dramatically reducing misery among seniors. Medicare and Medicaid, centerpieces of Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty, have provided vital health care to the disabled, the poor, the elderly and the dying. Yet now, Democrats focus their rhetoric on the middle class, and not on the vulnerable.
I grew up in a struggling household, and I can tell you that for the poor, the middle class isn't the next step; it is a distant shore. The middle class seems rich — two parents, good jobs with health-care benefits, homes, paid vacations, college educations.
The poor live concentrated in urban areas or virtually invisible in rural counties. They live far from where jobs are. They can't afford a car, so they have the greatest stake in public transportation. Their children suffer the highest infant mortality rates, the worst child malnutrition, so public health and child nutrition programs are invaluable. They go to the worst schools, often on mean streets in zones of violence and drugs, so aid to education ranks high on their priorities.
Because the poor tend not to vote, they are often ignored by political campaigns seeking to appeal to "likely voters." But this reality makes the poor potential swing voters. If they show up in large numbers, they can transform an election, particularly one like the current presidential race where there are few undecided voters left and the biggest question is who shows up to vote.
The battleground states of Ohio, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Virginia contain vast areas of impoverished Appalachia. As Lyndon Johnson showed, appealing to the poor in Appalachia helps to de-racialize the poverty vote. In fact, most poor people are not black or brown; they are white, female and young. Their vote or non-vote could be the margin of victory in these key swing states. And appealing to the poor — fighting to raise the minimum wage, defending affordable health care for all, pushing for greater investment in public transport and aid to schools, putting forth an agenda to revitalize our urban core areas — can mobilize non-voters in urban and rural areas.
I know this from personal experience. In 1984, my campaign for the presidency focused on reaching and registering poor and minority voters. In 1986, what one southern Senator called the "new voter" transformed the electorate in Georgia and elsewhere and helped Democrats take back the Senate.
Jesus warned we would be judged by how we treat the "least of these." Feeding the hungry is a moral imperative. But in a democracy, poor people are potentially rich voters. Their votes count as much as those of wealthy voters, and there are many more poor people.
In a democracy, standing up for the poor is not only morally right, it can be politically powerful.
Keep up with Rev. Jackson and the work of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition at www.rainbowpush.org.
What is the meaning of freedom? Angela Y. Davis' life and work have been dedicated to examining this fundamental question and to ending all forms of oppression that deny people their political, cultural, and sexual freedom.
"The Meaning of Freedom: And Other Difficult Dialogues" (City Lights Open Media) is a collection of 12 searing, previously unpublished speeches, in which Davis confronts the interconnected issues of power, race, gender, class, incarceration, conservatism and the ongoing need for social change in the United States.
With her characteristic brilliance, historical insight and penetrating analysis, Davis addresses examples of institutional injustice and explores the radical notion of freedom as a collective striving for real democracy — not a thing granted by the state, law, proclamation, or policy, but a participatory social process, rooted in difficult dialogues, that demands new ways of thinking and being.
In the introduction, Robin D.G. Kelly writes: "It is not too much to call her one of the world's leading philosophers of freedom."
Davis is the author of eight books and has conducted extensive research on numerous issues related to race, gender and imprisonment. She draws upon her own experiences in the early seventies as a person who spent 18 months in jail and on trial, after being placed on the FBI's "Ten Most Wanted List."
Her most recent books are "Are Prisons Obsolete?" about the abolition of the prison industrial complex, and a new edition of "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass."
"Delivered between 1994 and 2009, these public talks reveal Davis further developing her critique of the carceral state, offering fresh analysis of racism, gender, sexuality, global capitalism, and neoliberalism, responding to various crises of the last two decades, and always inviting her audiences to imagine a radically different future," said Kelly.
"They demonstrate the degree to which she remains a dedicated dialectical thinker. Davis has never promoted a political 'line,' nor have her ideas stood still. As the world changes and power relations shift from a post-Soviet, post-apartheid, post-Bush world to the mythical 'post-racial' one, she challenges us to critically interrogate our history, to deal with the social, political, cultural, and economic dynamics of the moment, and to pay attention to where people are."
Will President Obama get the unemployment rate under 8% next month? The overall employment rate reported by the Labor Department this morning improved slightly to 8.1% from 8.3% as 96,000 people found employment.
Just 12 hours after President Obama delivered his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention, the unemployment numbers were reported this morning and the White House was bracing for the worst but found slight improvement.
The Black unemployment rate remained at 14.1% for July and was reported at the same number, 14.1% again for August. This time last year, the Black unemployment rate was at a 28 year high at 16.7%.
01. Michelle Obama — FLOTUS delivered exactly what was needed at the exact time it was required. "Brilliant," said Charles Krauthammer. "One of the best speeches I have ever seen delivered by a first lady," tweeted Anderson Cooper. Do you remember Laura Bush's speeches? No you don't. That Michelle Obama wrote it herself makes it even more impressive.
02. Emanuel Cleaver – The Congressman pastor from Missouri and Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus talked about how partisanship was crippling the nation and mentioned something the President did not: Hope. Cleaver spoke of the need for national unity with a power that brought delegates to their feet hours before primetime on Wednesday.
03. Jennifer Granholm – In a wild raucous speech that at times seemed like it was veering slightly out of control, Granholm brought reminded people that it's a shame she's Canadian and can't run for President.
04. Bill Clinton – With a mix of myth, good 'ol boyness and a Clintonian dash of self indulgence, former President Clinton gave a better argument for President Obama's second term than Obama himself. Lines like, "It takes some brass to attack a guy for doing what you did," as he referred to Paul Ryan were vintage Clinton.
05. Julian Castro – After Gov. Chris Christie and Sen. Marco Rubio talked about themselves at the RNC, the Mayor of San Antonio used a wink and a big smile to made it look easy. He also got people thinking about 2016 and beyond.
06. Elizabeth Warren – "Wall Street CEOs—the same ones who wrecked our economy and destroyed millions of jobs—still strut around Congress, no shame, demanding favors, and acting like we should thank them," said consumer champion and Senate candidate Warren in a speech that put attention on the middle class and common sense.
07. John Lewis — Not too many people in the convention hall, or in the country, can say stuff like, "I first came to this city in 1961, the year Barack Obama was born. I was one of the 13 original "Freedom Riders." Rep. Lewis tied Jim Crow into voter suppression and the results were powerful.
08. John Kerry – With lines like, "Ask Osama Bin Laden If He's Better Off Than He Was 4 Years Ago" and "no nominee for President should ever fail to pay attention to our troops in an acceptance speech," Sen. John Kerry, attacked Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan on their lack of foreign policy experience. Suddenly Democrats have flipped the script on the issue.
"The first time I addressed this convention in 2004, I was a younger man; a senate candidate from Illinois who spoke about hope— not blind optimism or wishful thinking, but hope in the face of difficulty; hope in the face of uncertainty; that dogged faith in the future which has pushed this nation forward, even when the odds are great; even when the road is long.
"But when all is said and done— when you pick up that ballot to vote— you will face the clearest choice of any time in a generation. Over the next few years, big decisions will be made in Washington, on jobs and the economy; taxes and deficits; energy and education; war and peace— decisions that will have a huge impact on our lives and our children's lives for decades to come.
"Ours is a fight to restore the values that built the largest middle class and the strongest economy the world has ever known; the values my grandfather defended as a soldier in Patton's Army; the values that drove my grandmother to work on a bomber assembly line while he was gone.
"My grandparents were given the chance to go to college, buy their first home, and fulfill the basic bargain at the heart of America's story: the promise that hard work will pay off; that responsibility will be rewarded; that everyone gets a fair shot, and everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules— from Main Street to Wall Street to Washington, D.C.
"Now, our friends at the Republican convention were more than happy to talk about everything they think is wrong with America, but they didn't have much to say about how they'd make it right. They want your vote, but they don't want you to know their plan. And that's because all they have to offer is the same prescription they've had for the last thirty years:
"Have a surplus? Try a tax cut."
"Deficit too high? Try another."
"Feel a cold coming on? Take two tax cuts, roll back some regulations, and call us in the morning!"
"Now, I've cut taxes for those who need it— middle-class families and small businesses. But I don't believe that another round of tax breaks for millionaires will bring good jobs to our shores, or pay down our deficit. I don't believe that firing teachers or kicking students off financial aid will grow the economy, or help us compete with the scientists and engineers coming out of China. After all that we've been through, I don't believe that rolling back regulations on Wall Street will help the small businesswoman expand, or the laid-off construction worker keep his home. We've been there, we've tried that, and we're not going back. We're moving forward.
"But know this, America: Our problems can be solved. Our challenges can be met. The path we offer may be harder, but it leads to a better place. And I'm asking you to choose that future. I'm asking you to rally around a set of goals for your country— goals in manufacturing, energy, education, national security, and the deficit; a real, achievable plan that will lead to new jobs, more opportunity, and rebuild this economy on a stronger foundation. That's what we can do in the next four years, and that's why I'm running for a second term as president of the United States.
"After a decade of decline, this country created over half a million manufacturing jobs in the last two and a half years. And now you have a choice: we can give more tax breaks to corporations that ship jobs overseas, or we can start rewarding companies that open new plants and train new workers and create new jobs here, in the United States of America. We can help big factories and small businesses double their exports, and if we choose this path, we can create a million new manufacturing jobs in the next four years. You can make that happen. You can choose that future.
"Now you have a choice— between a strategy that reverses this progress, or one that builds on it. We've opened millions of new acres for oil and gas exploration in the last three years, and we'll open more. But unlike my opponent, I will not let oil companies write this country's energy plan, or endanger our coastlines, or collect another $4 billion in corporate welfare from our taxpayers.
"We're offering a better path— a future where we keep investing in wind and solar and clean coal; where farmers and scientists harness new biofuels to power our cars and trucks; where construction workers build homes and factories that waste less energy; where we develop a hundred year supply of natural gas that's right beneath our feet. If you choose this path, we can cut our oil imports in half by 2020 and support more than 600,000 new jobs in natural gas alone.
"You can choose a future where more Americans have the chance to gain the skills they need to compete, no matter how old they are or how much money they have. Education was the gateway to opportunity for me. It was the gateway for Michelle. And now more than ever, it is the gateway to a middle-class life.
"For the first time in a generation, nearly every state has answered our call to raise their standards for teaching and learning. Some of the worst schools in the country have made real gains in math and reading. Millions of students are paying less for college today because we finally took on a system that wasted billions of taxpayer dollars on banks and lenders.
"In a world of new threats and new challenges, you can choose leadership that has been tested and proven. Four years ago, I promised to end the war in Iraq. We did. I promised to refocus on the terrorists who actually attacked us on 9/11. We have. We've blunted the Taliban's momentum in Afghanistan, and in 2014, our longest war will be over. A new tower rises above the New York skyline, al-Qaida is on the path to defeat, and Osama bin Laden is dead.
"Tonight, we pay tribute to the Americans who still serve in harm's way. We are forever in debt to a generation whose sacrifice has made this country safer and more respected. We will never forget you. And so long as I'm commander in chief, we will sustain the strongest military the world has ever known. When you take off the uniform, we will serve you as well as you've served us— because no one who fights for this country should have to fight for a job, or a roof over their head, or the care that they need when they come home.
"Around the world, we've strengthened old alliances and forged new coalitions to stop the spread of nuclear weapons. We've reasserted our power across the Pacific and stood up to China on behalf of our workers. From Burma to Libya to South Sudan, we have advanced the rights and dignity of all human beings— men and women; Christians and Muslims and Jews.
"After all, you don't call Russia our number one enemy— and not al-Qaida— unless you're still stuck in a Cold War time warp. You might not be ready for diplomacy with Beijing if you can't visit the Olympics without insulting our closest ally. My opponent said it was "tragic" to end the war in Iraq, and he won't tell us how he'll end the war in Afghanistan. I have, and I will. And while my opponent would spend more money on military hardware that our joint chiefs don't even want, I'll use the money we're no longer spending on war to pay down our debt and put more people back to work— rebuilding roads and bridges; schools and runways. After two wars that have cost us thousands of lives and over a trillion dollars, it's time to do some nation-building right here at home.
"I want to reform the tax code so that it's simple, fair, and asks the wealthiest households to pay higher taxes on incomes over $250,000— the same rate we had when Bill Clinton was president; the same rate we had when our economy created nearly 23 million new jobs, the biggest surplus in history, and a lot of millionaires to boot.
"Now, I'm still eager to reach an agreement based on the principles of my bipartisan debt commission. No party has a monopoly on wisdom. No democracy works without compromise. But when Gov. Romney and his allies in Congress tell us we can somehow lower our deficit by spending trillions more on new tax breaks for the wealthy— well, you do the math. I refuse to go along with that. And as long as I'm president, I never will.
"I refuse to ask middle class families to give up their deductions for owning a home or raising their kids just to pay for another millionaire's tax cut. I refuse to ask students to pay more for college; or kick children out of Head Start programs, or eliminate health insurance for millions of Americans who are poor, elderly, or disabled— all so those with the most can pay less.
"And I will never turn Medicare into a voucher. No American should ever have to spend their golden years at the mercy of insurance companies. They should retire with the care and dignity they have earned. Yes, we will reform and strengthen Medicare for the long haul, but we'll do it by reducing the cost of health care— not by asking seniors to pay thousands of dollars more. And we will keep the promise of Social Security by taking the responsible steps to strengthen it— not by turning it over to Wall Street.
"We believe that a little girl who's offered an escape from poverty by a great teacher or a grant for college could become the founder of the next Google, or the scientist who cures cancer, or the President of the United States— and it's in our power to give her that chance.
We know that churches and charities can often make more of a difference than a poverty program alone. We don't want handouts for people who refuse to help themselves, and we don't want bailouts for banks that break the rules. We don't think government can solve all our problems. But we don't think that government is the source of all our problems— any more than are welfare recipients, or corporations, or unions, or immigrants, or gays, or any other group we're told to blame for our troubles.
"I recognize that times have changed since I first spoke to this convention. The times have changed— and so have I.
I'm no longer just a candidate. I'm the president. I know what it means to send young Americans into battle, for I have held in my arms the mothers and fathers of those who didn't return. I've shared the pain of families who've lost their homes, and the frustration of workers who've lost their jobs. If the critics are right that I've made all my decisions based on polls, then I must not be very good at reading them. And while I'm proud of what we've achieved together, I'm far more mindful of my own failings, knowing exactly what Lincoln meant when he said, "I have been driven to my knees many times by the overwhelming conviction that I had no place else to go."
"If you reject the notion that this nation's promise is reserved for the few, your voice must be heard in this election.
If you reject the notion that our government is forever beholden to the highest bidder, you need to stand up in this election.
If you believe that new plants and factories can dot our landscape; that new energy can power our future; that new schools can provide ladders of opportunity to this nation of dreamers; if you believe in a country where everyone gets a fair shot, and everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules, then I need you to vote this November.
"America, I never said this journey would be easy, and I won't promise that now. Yes, our path is harder— but it leads to a better place. Yes our road is longer— but we travel it together. We don't turn back. We leave no one behind. We pull each other up. We draw strength from our victories, and we learn from our mistakes, but we keep our eyes fixed on that distant horizon, knowing that providence is with us, and that we are surely blessed to be citizens of the greatest nation on earth.
MRS. OBAMA: Thank you. Thank you so much. (Applause.) Thank you. Thank you so much.
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years!
MRS. OBAMA: With your help. With your help. (Applause.)
Let me start -- I want to start by thanking Elaine. Elaine, thank you so much. We are so grateful for your family's service and sacrifice, and we will always have your back. (Applause.)
Over the past few years as First Lady, I have had the extraordinary privilege of traveling all across this country. And everywhere I've gone, and the people I've met, and the stories I've heard, I have seen the very best of the American spirit. I have seen it in the incredible kindness and warmth that people have shown me and my family, especially our girls.
I've seen it in teachers in a near-bankrupt school district who vowed to keep teaching without pay. (Applause.) I've seen it in people who become heroes at a moment's notice, diving into harm's way to save others; flying across the country to put out a fire; driving for hours to bail out a flooded town.
And I've seen it in our men and women in uniform and our proud military families. (Applause.) In wounded warriors who tell me they're not just going to walk again, they're going to run, and they're going to run marathons. (Applause.) In the young man blinded by a bomb in Afghanistan who said, simply, "I'd give my eyes 100 times again to have the chance to do what I have done and what I can still do."
Every day, the people I meet inspire me. Every day, they make me proud. Every day, they remind me how blessed we are to live in the greatest nation on Earth. (Applause.)
Serving as your First Lady is an honor and a privilege. But back when we first came together four years ago, I still had some concerns about this journey we'd begun. While I believed deeply in my husband's vision for this country, and I was certain he would make an extraordinary President, like any mother, I was worried about what it would mean for our girls if he got that chance. How will we keep them grounded under the glare of the national spotlight? How would they feel being uprooted from their school, their friends, and the only home they'd ever known?
See, our life before moving to Washington was filled with simple joys -- Saturdays at soccer games, Sundays at Grandma's house, and a date night for Barack and me was either dinner or a movie, because as an exhausted mom, I couldn't stay awake for both. (Laughter.)
And the truth is, I loved the life we had built for our girls, and I deeply loved the man I had built that life with -- and I didn't want that to change if he became President. (Applause.) I loved Barack just the way he was.
You see, even back then, when Barack was a senator and a presidential candidate, to me, he was still the guy who picked me up for our dates in a car that was so rusted out, I could actually see the pavement going by in a hole in the passenger side door. (Laughter.) He was the guy whose proudest possession was a coffee table he'd found in a dumpster, and whose only pair of decent shoes was a half size too small. (Laughter.)
But, see, when Barack started telling me about his family -– see, now, that's when I knew I had found a kindred spirit, someone whose values and upbringing were so much like mine.
You see, Barack and I were both raised by families who didn't have much in the way of money or material possessions but who had given us something far more valuable -- their unconditional love, their unflinching sacrifice, and the chance to go places they had never imagined for themselves. (Applause.)
My father was a pump operator at the city water plant, and he was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis when my brother and I were young. And even as a kid, I knew there were plenty of days when he was in pain, and I knew there were plenty of mornings when it was a struggle for him to simply get out of bed.
But every morning, I watched my father wake up with a smile, grab his walker, prop himself up against the bathroom sink, and slowly shave and button his uniform. And when he returned home after a long day's work, my brother and I would stand at the top of the stairs of our little apartment, patiently waiting to greet him, watching as he reached down to lift one leg, and then the other, to slowly climb his way into our arms.
But despite these challenges, my dad hardly ever missed a day of work. He and my mom were determined to give me and my brother the kind of education they could only dream of. (Applause.)
And when my brother and I finally made it to college, nearly all of our tuition came from student loans and grants. But my dad still had to pay a tiny portion of that tuition himself. And every semester, he was determined to pay that bill right on time, even taking out loans when he fell short. He was so proud to be sending his kids to college, and he made sure we never missed a registration deadline because his check was late.
You see, for my dad, that's what it meant to be a man. (Applause.) Like so many of us, that was the measure of his success in life -- being able to earn a decent living that allowed him to support his family.
And as I got to know Barack, I realized that even though he had grown up all the way across the country, he'd been brought up just like me. Barack was raised by a single mom who struggled to pay the bills, and by grandparents who stepped in when she needed help. Barack's grandmother started out as a secretary at a community bank, and she moved quickly up the ranks, but like so many women, she hit a glass ceiling. And for years, men no more qualified than she was -- men she had actually trained -- were promoted up the ladder ahead of her, earning more and more money while Barack's family continued to scrape by.
But day after day, she kept on waking up at dawn to catch the bus, arriving at work before anyone else, giving her best without complaint or regret. And she would often tell Barack, "So long as you kids do well, Bar, that's all that really matters."
Like so many American families, our families weren't asking for much. They didn't begrudge anyone else's success or care that others had much more than they did -- in fact, they admired it. (Applause.) They simply believed in that fundamental American promise that, even if you don't start out with much, if you work hard and do what you're supposed to do, you should be able to build a decent life for yourself and an even better life for your kids and grandkids. That's how they raised us (Applause.) That's what we learned from their example.
We learned about dignity and decency -- that how hard you work matters more than how much you make; that helping others means more than just getting ahead yourself. (Applause.) We learned about honesty and integrity -- that the truth matters -- (applause) -- that you don't take shortcuts or play by your own set of rules; and success doesn't count unless you earn it fair and square. (Applause.) We learned about gratitude and humility -- that so many people had a hand in our success, from the teachers who inspired us to the janitors who kept our school clean. (Applause.) And we were taught to value everyone's contribution and treat everyone with respect.
Those are the values that Barack and I -- and so many of you -- are trying to pass on to our own children. That's who we are.
And standing before you four years ago, I knew that I didn't want any of that to change if Barack became President. Well, today, after so many struggles and triumphs and moments that have tested my husband in ways I never could have imagined, I have seen firsthand that being President doesn't change who you are -- no, it reveals who you are. (Applause.)
You see, I've gotten to see up close and personal what being President really looks like. And I've seen how the issues that come across a President's desk are always the hard ones -- the problems where no amount of data or numbers will get you to the right answer; the judgment calls where the stakes are so high, and there is no margin for error. And as President, you're going to get all kinds of advice from all kinds of people. But at the end of the day, when it comes time to make that decision, as President, all you have to guide you are your values and your vision, and the life experiences that make you who you are. (Applause.)
So when it comes to rebuilding our economy, Barack is thinking about folks like my dad and like his grandmother. He's thinking about the pride that comes from a hard day's work. That's why he signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to help women get equal pay for equal work. (Applause.) That's why he cut taxes for working families and small businesses, and fought to get the auto industry back on its feet. (Applause.)
That's how he brought our economy from the brink of collapse to creating jobs again -- jobs you can raise a family on, good jobs right here in the United States of America. (Applause.)
When it comes to the health of our families, Barack refused to listen to all those folks who told him to leave health reform for another day, another President. (Applause.) He didn't care whether it was the easy thing to do politically -- no, that's not how he was raised. He cared that it was the right thing to do. (Applause.)
He did it because he believes that here in America, our grandparents should be able to afford their medicine, our kids should be able to see a doctor when they're sick, and no one in this country should ever go broke because of an accident or an illness. (Applause.)
And he believes that women are more than capable of making our own choices about our bodies and our health care. (Applause.) That's what my husband stands for. (Applause.)
When it comes to giving our kids the education they deserve, Barack knows that, like me and like so many of you, he never could have attended college without financial aid. And believe it or not, when we were first married, our combined monthly student loan bill was actually higher than our mortgage. (Laughter.) Yeah, we were so young, so in love -- and so in debt. (Laughter.)
And that's why Barack has fought so hard to increase student aid and keep interest rates down -- (applause) -- because he wants every young person to fulfill their promise and be able to attend college without a mountain of debt. (Applause.)
So in the end, for Barack, these issues aren't political -- they're personal. Because Barack knows what it means when a family struggles. He knows what it means to want something more for your kids and grandkids. Barack knows the American Dream because he's lived it. (Applause.) And he wants everyone in this country -- everyone -- to have that same opportunity, no matter who we are, or where we're from, or what we look like, or who we love. (Applause.)
And he believes that when you've worked hard, and done well, and walked through that doorway of opportunity, you do not slam it shut behind you. No, you reach back, and you give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed. (Applause.)
So when people ask me whether being in the White House has changed my husband, I can honestly say that when it comes to his character, and his convictions, and his heart, Barack Obama is still the same man I fell in love with all those years ago. (Applause.) He's the same man who started his career by turning down high-paying jobs and instead working in struggling neighborhoods where a steel plant had shut down, fighting to rebuild those communities and get folks back to work -- because for Barack, success isn't about how much money you make, it's about the difference you make in people's lives. (Applause.)
He's the same man, when our girls were first born, would anxiously check their cribs every few minutes to ensure that they were still breathing -- (laughter) -- proudly showing them off to everyone we knew.
You see, that's the man who sits down with me and our girls for dinner nearly every night, patiently answering questions about issues in the news, strategizing about middle school friendships. (Laughter.)
That's the man I see in those quiet moments late at night, hunched over his desk, poring over the letters people have sent him. The letter from the father struggling to pay his bills, from the woman dying of cancer whose insurance company won't cover her care, from the young person with so much promise but so few opportunities.
I see the concern in his eyes and I hear the determination in his voice as he tells me, "You won't believe what these folks are going through, Michelle -- it's not right. We've got to keep working to fix this. We've got so much more to do." (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!
MRS. OBAMA: I see how those stories -- our collection of struggles and hopes and dreams -- I see how that's what drives Barack Obama every single day.
And I didn't think that it was possible, but let me tell you, today I love my husband even more than I did four years ago, even more than I did 23 years ago, when we first met. (Applause.) Let me tell you why. See, I love that he has never forgotten how he started. I love that we can trust Barack to do what he says he's going to do, even when it's hard -- especially when it's hard. (Applause.)
I love that for Barack, there is no such thing as "us" and "them" -- he doesn't care whether you're a Democrat, a Republican, or none of the above; he knows that we all love our country. And he is always ready to listen to good ideas, he's always looking for the very best in everyone he meets.
And I love that even in the toughest moments, when we're all sweating it -- when we're worried that the bill won't pass, and it seems like all is lost -- see, Barack never lets himself get distracted by the chatter and the noise. No, just like his grandmother, he just keeps getting up and moving forward -- with patience and wisdom, and courage and grace. (Applause.)
And he reminds me that we are playing a long game here, and that change is hard and change is slow, and it never happens all at once. But eventually we get there. We always do.
We get there because of folks like my dad, folks like Barack's grandmother -- men and women who said to themselves, "I may not have a chance to fulfill my dreams, but maybe my children will, maybe my grandchildren will."
See, so many of us stand here tonight because of their sacrifice, and longing, and steadfast love -- they swallowed their fears and doubts and did what was hard. (Applause.)
So today, when the challenges we face start to seem overwhelming -- or even impossible -- let us never forget that doing the impossible is the history of this nation. It is who we are as Americans. It is how this country was built. (Applause.)
And if our parents and grandparents could toil and struggle for us -- if they could raise beams of steel to the sky, send a man to the moon, connect the world with the touch of a button -- then surely we can keep on sacrificing and building for our own kids and grandkids, right? (Applause.)
And if so many brave men and women could wear our country's uniform and sacrifice their lives for our most fundamental rights, then surely we can do our part as citizens of this great democracy to exercise those rights. Surely we can get to the polls on Election Day and make our voices heard. (Applause.)
If farmers and blacksmiths could win independence from an empire, if immigrants could leave behind everything they knew for a better life on our shores, if women could be dragged to jail for seeking the vote, if a generation could defeat a depression and define greatness for all time, if a young preacher could lift us to the mountaintop with his righteous dream -- (applause) -- and if proud Americans can be who they are and boldly stand at the altar with who they love -- (applause) -- then surely, surely we can give everyone in this country a fair chance at that great American Dream. (Applause.)
Because in the end, more than anything else, that is the story of this country -- the story of unwavering hope grounded in unyielding struggle. That is what has made my story, and Barack's story, and so many other American stories possible.
And let me tell you something. I say all of this tonight not just as First Lady, no, not just as a wife. You see, at the end of the day, my most important title is still "mom-in-chief." (Applause.) My daughters are still the heart of my heart and the center of my world.
But let me tell you, today, I have none of those worries from four years ago -- no, not about whether Barack and I were doing what was best for our girls. Because today, I know from experience that if I truly want to leave a better world for my daughters -- and for all of our sons and daughters, if we want to give all of our children a foundation for their dreams and opportunities worthy of their promise, if we want to give them that sense of limitless possibility -- that belief that here in America, there is always something better out there if you're willing to work for it -- (applause) -- then we must work like never before. (Applause.)
And we must once again come together and stand together for the man we can trust to keep moving this great country forward -- my husband, our President, Barack Obama. (Applause.)
Thank you. God bless you, and God bless America. (Applause.)
Students Posed Questions on Jobs, Economy, Student Loans and Preparing for Global Economy
Charlotte, N.C. – Students and educators from area colleges and universities participated Sept. 4 -- opening day of the Democratic National Convention -- in a live-streamed interactive forum with some of the nation's most influential political leaders.
The interactive youth summit called "UFuture - A Summit for Innovative Young Thinkers" brought together more than 300 youth from area colleges. The summit was live-streamed from the campus of Johnson C. Smith University (JCSU) in Charlotte, NC.
Actors Alfre Woodard ("Desperate Housewives"), Hill Harper ("CSI NY") and Nicole Ari Parker ("Boogie Nights"), engaged youth in a two-hour interactive discussion, which was presented by the Congressional Black Caucus Institute in conjunction with JCSU.
The summit created the opportunity for the participants to share their ideas about living and learning in a global community as they interacted with national elected officials, congressional members, White House officials, educators, entertainers and business leaders. Students who were not able to attend in person tweeted questions and interacted remotely via the Internet. The two-hour event was also broadcast live starting at 10 a.m. on the JCSU website.
Members of Congress, Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (MS), Rep. James E. Clyburn (SC), Rep. Melvin L. Watt (NC), Rep. Marcia Fudge (OH), Rep. Danny K. Davis (IL), Rep. G.K. Butterfield (NC) and Rep. Barbara Lee (CA) and Rep. Terri Sewell (AL) answered questions submitted by the youth. Nicole Ari Parker moved throughout the audience to gather the live questions presented by students.
"Now, more than ever, it is important that we engage our youth in creating the future they want to see. This election cycle is pivotal in terms of how our country will move forward," said CBC Institute Chair, Rep. Bennie Thompson. "Our youth are our future. Their input and questions can serve as guideposts for us to work together to solve the issues that impact them today and prepare us for the ones we may face in the future."
In addition to JCSU, other colleges and universities represented at the summit included Central Piedmont Community College, Johnson and Wales University, Gardner-Webb University, Livingstone College, Clemson University, Winthrop University, Wingate University, Davidson College, UNC Charlotte, South Carolina State University, Bennett College, Spellman College and Benedict College.
"The summit speaks to the desires of today's young voters to engage in politics and seek answers to relevant issues that affect their future," said JCSU President Ron Carter. "It falls directly in line with the Congressional Black Caucus Institute's mission to educate today's voters and train tomorrow's political leaders."
Over the past 12 years, the Congressional Black Caucus Institute has hosted many voter education events, including town hall meetings during the Democratic and Republican national conventions and three nationally televised presidential primary debates.
Panelists and speakers stressed the importance of voting and encouraging others to get registered to vote. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, received a standing ovation when he spoke about how young black men and women can change America. "You can change America. You are America," said Rep. Cleaver.
Melody Barnes, the first White House Director of Domestic Policy in the Obama Administration, stressed the importance of students going abroad to study. Barnes encouraged students to study abroad and gain language skills to become better global citizens and global leaders.
The Rev. Sun Myung Moon, the self-proclaimed leader of the Unification Church has died. He was 92.
Moon, who was from South Korea, was one of the most controversial religious movements to sweep America in the 1970s. He had been hospitalized with pneumonia in August and died Monday at a hospital in Gapyeong, South Korea, according to a church announcement.
At the height of his popularity, Moon claimed 5 million members world-wide, however those numbers are believed to have fallen into the thousands today.
Moon offered an unorthodox message that blended calls for world peace with an unusual interpretation of Christianity, strains of Confucianism and a strident anti-communism. He was famous for presiding over mass marriage ceremonies that highlighted Unification's emphasis on traditional morality.
Budget Cuts, Teacher Layoffs Result in Spike in Teacher-Student Ratio
President Obama recently released a new White House report, Investing in Our Future: Returning Teachers to the Classroom. According to the report, more than 300,000 local education jobs have been slashed since 2009, resulting in a 4.6 percent increase in the teacher-to-student ratio from the fall of 2008 to the fall of 2010, from 15.3 to 16.0.
Below is National Education Association President Dennis Van Roekel's statement on the report:
"President Obama is recognizing the importance of smaller class sizes in student achievement and the detrimental effects budget cuts have on our students, and we applaud him for that. Gov. Romney has made it clear that he doesn't believe in the impact of keeping class sizes small, despite evidence to the contrary and despite what parents across this country know.
"Some people are looking for a silver bullet, but there are no shortcuts to student learning. Class size is a critical piece of the school improvement puzzle and we cannot ignore the positive effect that personalized learning has for kids. As the president has said, when we are looking for solutions that work, let's not overlook common sense fixes like smaller class size and early education.
"This report reminds us that we have a choice to make in November between two visions for America. President Obama's, in which all students deserve a great education; and Gov. Romney's, in which kids get the best education their parents can afford. President Obama continues to show his commitment to improving our education system by investing in our students."
As college students begin returning to campus, registering to vote may prove far more challenging than registering for classes. For some co-eds, their vote in November's election is in jeopardy in states where newly enacted laws prohibit the use of student IDs at polling sites.
Across the country, restrictive voting laws -- such as requiring a photo ID at the polling place – are sweeping the country. Since 2011, 19 states have enacted 24 restrictive voting laws that civil rights advocates say are more likely to disenfranchise ethnic voters. Among those states, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas and Tennessee have passed laws that either make it harder for students to use school IDs or outright exclude student IDs as an acceptable form of identification at the polls.
In Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, "laws were actually drafted in such a way that not a single existing public university or school ID complied with the requirements as set out in the legislation," said Lee Rowland, counsel at the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center for Justice.
Speaking to media in a teleconference this week co-hosted by New America Media, Rowland said laws that seek to limit student voting are not only bad policy but interfere with students' Constitutional right to cast a vote in the places they choose to call home.
In Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, she said colleges and universities have taken steps to ensure their students will have acceptable IDs in time for the election. Some schools have begun either issuing new IDs or stickers that can be affixed to current IDs that would bring them into compliance with the new laws.
Yet, Rowland pointed out South Carolina, Texas and Tennessee, "explicitly exclude student IDs from the list of acceptable photo identification that is taken at the polling place." She called Texas the most "egregious" offender because its new laws would tend to have a disparate impact on African-American voters.
Photo-ID laws hurt minorities
The Texas law allows the use of a concealed weapons permit as a form of ID to vote but only seven to eight percent of African Americans have one. She explained the gun permit ID provision carries little racial import in isolation but when viewed in conjunction with a student ID law that could potentially affect the state's public university population, of which 17 percent is African American, the intent to provide access for one group of voters while limiting access for another is thinly veiled.
African-American and Hispanic students typically have lower rates of car ownership and would thus be affected in higher numbers than their white peers by the student ID law, because state-issued driver's licenses are the prevailing form of photo ID. The reasons for the gap in rates of car ownership between the groups are due to differences in income levels as well as the geographic reality of population distribution. Urban dwellers often rely more on public transportation than their rural counterparts. Wisconsin's low rate of car ownership among African-Americans and Latinos is another well-documented example of this pattern.
Photo-ID laws are not the only barriers that students may now face. Rowland cited states that have shortened the timeframe during which a student may declare residency. Laws imposing unrealistic bureaucratic burdens and costs on voter registration drives have been particularly burdensome.
Pushback to restrictive voting laws
In some states, members of the public, galvanized by civil rights groups, are pushing back against restrictive voting laws.
In Florida, early voting days have been restored by a panel of judges this month and, in a separate May decision, a federal judge blocked provisions of a law he termed "impractical" due to its onerous fines and reporting requirements for organizations conducting voter registration drives. Rock the Vote, with the League of Women Voters of Florida and the Florida Public Interest Research Group, brought the suit that successfully rescinded those requirements.
Like the Pennsylvania and Wisconsin school systems' initiatives on reissuing student IDs, Rowland of the Brennan Center cited the Florida victories, as well as other citizen-led push backs against restrictive laws as victories in the rapidly shifting landscape of the voter suppression wars.
Heather Smith, president of Rock the Vote, said one unfortunate aspect of the rash of new laws is that her organization has had to spend time challenging them as opposed to getting about its core mission of registering new voters and educating them about the political process.
Courting the youth vote
To assist young voters to obtain the information they need about voting, Rowland said the Brennan Center has posted its 50-State Student Voting Guide as an on-line resource. Smith said Rock the Vote, at the end of August, plans to launch a massive public education campaign through social media, campus newspapers, billboards and other avenues designed to reach Millennials.
Regardless of the scale of Rock the Vote's outreach, Smith has no illusions about the difficulties of the task ahead. "The Census [Bureau] reported that over six million voters in the last presidential election didn't cast a ballot because they didn't get registered in time," she noted, adding that students often fail to understand that "they have to register in the place where they want to vote."
The laws tightening restrictions on young voters -- shortening the time lines for registering or for reporting a change in residency -- have arisen from Republican legislatures concerned about the youth vote, particularly its burgeoning African-American and Latino segments, that have trended Democratic in recent presidential elections. Smith said "50,000 Latinos are turning 18 each month," and "just over 12,000 kids every single day become eligible to vote."
Still, some analysts predict that the youth vote will be very much in play for several reasons. For one, the Millennial Generation is clearly concerned about their job prospects in a lagging economy, but additionally, young voters and first-time voters are often enthusiastic for change. On the flipside, some are so jaded that they decline to participate in electoral politics. None of those sentiments bode well for incumbents.
Smith didn't speak to political aspects of restrictive laws, but she was critical of those who claim to desire a better democracy, while simultaneously erecting barriers to voting.
"When young people participate at an early age, they're voters for the rest of their lives," Smith said, "and if the strength of a democracy is determined by the participation of its citizens, we should be celebrating and encouraging participation amongst our newest and youngest voters, not making it harder for them to show up."
Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Emanuel Cleaver II released the following statement pertaining to the Aug. 30 ruling in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in Texas v. Holder, the state's proposed voter ID law:
"Attacks on our Constitutional right to vote are underway in states across the country and today's decision by a federal court proves these efforts can be challenged and defeated. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 guaranteed that every eligible voter in America would not be turned away from the ballot box, and blatantly discriminatory laws cannot be allowed to stand.
"Attempts to disenfranchise millions of voters, particularly those from African American, Asian and Latino communities must be stopped."While there are individuals working to guarantee our country's regression by proposing and advocating for these restrictive laws, there are many more diligently working in their communities to ensure voters are informed and prepared to exercise their right to vote on Election Day. Today's victory belongs to us.
"The Congressional Black Caucus applauds the Department of Justice for continuing to aggressively challenge these biased Voter ID and other suppressive laws. We will also continue to be vocal and active in defense of our fundamental right to vote."
Rushed Assumptions Made Basis of Conclusion in Death Investigation
MEMPHIS – The Rev. Jesse Jackson recently joined Cochran Firm managing partner Benjamin Irwin and the family of Chavis Carter at a press conference surrounding unresolved matters in the death of Carter 21, who died earlier this summer while in custody of the Jonesboro, Ark., police.
Addressing a crowd of citizens and media at the Monumental Baptist Church in Memphis, Jackson called for justice.
"We appeal to the Department of Justice and the FBI to engage in a thorough investigation and leave no stone unturned until justice is realized," Rev. Jackson said. "The good news in this tragedy is that there is a credible, able law firm, the Cochran Law Firm, making the case for the Carter family. Chavis is dead and cannot speak for himself."
Carter family representatives have launched an investigation to determine how and why he died of a gunshot wound to the temple on July 28.
While police have agreed to cooperate in The Cochran Firm's investigation, many things remain behind closed doors.
Jackson called attention to missing sections of an edited police dashboard camera video from the night of the shooting released by the Jonesboro Police Department.
"While this case is surrounded in mystery, there are certain things we do know," Jackson said. "He was alive when they stopped him. Alive in police custody. They frisked him twice and found no weapon. The second time he was handcuffed. Then we get this mysterious information that he did a Houdini act somehow. He then, handcuffed with no weapon in site, used his left hand to shoot himself in the right temple. That is hard to believe. Moreover, at that point there is a gap in the (video) tape. We need not only the tape be released, but the tape they have not released. They make the position that there is no more information in the gap because of technical difficulty. This seems to be a convenient explanation but not an acceptable one."
Irwin stated that the basis for conclusions derived by the police investigation and the autopsy are unclear. Many of the questions regarding the origins of the gun and how Carter could die while in police custody after being searched twice remain unanswered.
While his concerns with the investigation are many, Irwin describes a rush to conclusions as the overarching problem.
"Too many assumptions and opinions have been adopted as facts in this case, and that can only slow down our search for the truth," Irwin said. "An investigation should never begin with a conclusion and be followed by a search for facts that support the previously stated, premature conclusion. When that happens, relevant evidence is not gathered and possible contradicting conclusions are ignored. That is exactly what is happening here. Uncovering the truth should be the top priority."
"How do police officers who did not find a gun on Chavis in two searches, and allege they did not see the shooting, determine so quickly that Chavis shot himself," Irwin continued. "Ever since that snap judgment without the benefit of evidence like gun powder residue tests, police have been too busy trying to prove their conclusion to consider any other possible scenarios. New information is not being gathered, and unsupportive evidence is ignored. We still do not know where the gun came from, how the gun ended up in the car or who shot the gun. Police say Chavis hid the gun in the car when placed in custody. Where is the evidence to prove this allegation? Just because someone says it, does not make it true."
Ultimately, how and by whom the trigger was pulled does not make a difference regarding the matter of responsibility.
"Chavis died while in police custody, a time when he should have been safe," Irwin said. "Even if some aspects of this case remain a mystery, the Jonesboro Police Department showed great negligence in not protecting him from this tragic death. This issue is important to not only the family, but to all people. Everyone needs to know that they can feel safe when taken into police custody."
According to Irwin, the family is prepared to accept whatever outcome is presented by the facts, but conclusions based upon a rush judgment and opinions with few supporting facts continue to fuel the investigation.
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