Ten
years ago at this date and time a little known state senator gave a keynote
address to the Democratic National Convention in Boston, MA.
This
state senator with the funny sounding name and big ears was running for US
Senate in his home state of Illinois.
Little
did our country know that his speech would launch a larger political career.
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 a baby and went to work on a bomber assembly line. After the war, they
studied on the G.I. Bill, bought a house through F.H.A., 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 -- 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'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, Liberty and
the pursuit of Happiness.
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 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 to Vietnam, to his years as a
prosecutor and lieutenant governor, through two decades in the United States
Senate, he's 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
-- awhile back I met a young man named Shamus in a V.F.W. 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 ever hope for in
a child.
But then I asked myself,
"Are we serving Shamus 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 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 -- Now let me be
clear. 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 is a senior citizen somewhere who can’t pay for their
prescription drugs, and having 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 -- 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, 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 -- In the end -- 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 millworker’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 that I do, if you feel the same
hopefulness that I do -- if we do what we must do, then I have no doubt 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.
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