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Why was it important African Americans gained the right to vote
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Anna Lebedeva Professor Graham HILD 7A December 9, 2014 A New Hope (Think Piece #2) African American lives were changed the moment President Barack Obama was inaugurated. White people began to see African Americans as more than people they could bully around and blame for vandalism and other petty crimes. At the same time, African Americans saw Obama as a sign of hope and maybe even as their hero or idol as Muhammad did, in Simms' piece "Go! Be a Superhero". People of all ages and back-stories appreciated the rise of an African American person to power. Randall Horton in his article "Brand New Morning" talks about him being a convicted felon who endured many hardships in his childhood because of bullying and injustice. Sent down the wrong …show more content…
The whole article compilation, "44 on 44" by Hooper, Sanchez, and Simanga is exclusively African Americans writing about Obama's election. Therefore, these people would definitely view Obama as some kind of hero and his election a momentous point in history. Muhammad, the boy in Simms' article, saw Obama as a superhero: "Obama as Superhero spoke to Muhammad in a language that was familiar" (11). This boy looks up to the newly elected president so much, but with his struggles as a kid - with little practical jokes played on him and more serious accusations thrown at him - anyone would see Obama as a superhero. One poem by Walker called "Obama Shuffle" thanks people for standing in line to the voting booth, with a reference to African American's past: "chained together" (20). Walker states metaphorically that the years of torture and slavery brought upon the African Americans earlier in history were undone by Obama's inauguration - that is the kind of joy that he feels towards Obama being elected. Trethewey in "Another Country" writes about her mom's troubles in the 1960s due to her marriage to a white man. She mentions how thrilled her mom would be if she was still alive and saw an African American man be elected as president (58). She is saying that since her mom went through a rough couple of decades she would be more appreciative of a black president than other people would. All of these writers feel that simply …show more content…
Chuck D and Johnson in their article state that while Obama is in office they with the rest of the African American population hope to see a smaller wealth gap between white people and African Americans as well as a lower percentage of homelessness (45). This couple not only strongly believes in Obama, but also that he can bring reform to the country. Chideya in her article talks about Obama facing many problems that need fixing in the United States, and that he should focus mostly on education (136). This is another example of looking ahead into Obama's presidency and urging him to focus primarily on education. Lastly, Cleage writes about Michelle Obama and how she is as amazing and influential to the world as her husband is. She states, "Michelle Obama would still be a very powerful woman" (27), even if she did not marry Barack Obama. Cleage feels so strongly about Michelle Obama that she goes as far as to say that the First Lady is the best of the new Americans and that she really is America (28). She is trying to say that it was not just the president that changed the US, it was the entire Obama family and that with both Michelle Obama and Barack Obama in power great changes can be made for the country. These writers are imploring Obama to bring change to America since now there is a powerful
Roy Peter Clark, author of “A More Perfect Union”: Why It Worked, takes a stance on President Barack Obama’s speech while analyzing it. President Barack Obama delivered a speech titled “A More Perfect Union.” His speech focused on the prominent issue of racism in America. In this article, Clark talks about President Obama’s known power and brilliance. Clark makes references and comparisons to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and W.EB. DuBois. “A More Perfect Union” features writing techniques that makes the message more defined and effective. President Obama utilizes four closely related rhetorical strategies. Clark broadly explains the purpose of the rhetorical strategies. Allusion, parallelism, two-ness, and autobiography helped to shape President Obama’s speech that that was meant to create
The first text is a column called “Black is being seen in a whole new light” and it was written by the lawyer and columnist Yolanda Young. According to the text the African Americans has gained more acceptances from the American citizens after Barack Obama has become the president of the United States. Furthermore it
In recent years, President Obama and the way he handles things has become a very controversial topic. In the article “Obama’s ‘Where’s Waldo?’ Presidency” Ruth Marcus describes that controversy, in which she gives her opinion of President Obama. Marcus begins by discussing how in Barack Obama’s campaign he talked about “change we can believe in”, but she later tells the reader that he has “been missing in action” (Marcus, Paragraph 1). Throughout the article, she tells of numerous issues that Obama seemed to be missing on, and presents the reader with the question, where is President Obama?
In contempt of Obama’s humble giving spirit, vivid personality, and many accomplishments, a debate is always at hand upon hearing the infamous name Barack Hussein Obama. From his place of birth, religion, and ethnicity Obama’s face a fair share of controversy. At the heels of adversity along with sheer determination to help others Obama became a leader that delivers and one of the most influential people of America. Adversity was introduced to Obama at an early age. With a Kenyan father and Caucasian mother residing in Hawaii, Obama has always stood out in numerous ways. In 1959 Barack Obama Senior was selected from a number of candidates to go to school in the US where he attended The University of Hawaii in Honolulu to
Americans in order to assure these ones of their importance and to remind them that they are
The speech given by Mr. President Deals with the consequences of violent actions and it raises questions of morality. It is an attempt to guide the American people through their hard times and motivating them.
Many people believed Senator Obama won the presidential nomination because he gives a speech that changed the political, religion issues about the race. President Barack Obama is the 44th president and the first African American to serve as U.S president. He was elected second terms over former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney. On March 18, 2008, president Obama gave a famous speech about the political, religion issues of race in the United States speaking at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. This speech brings more hopes to the black people, and opposed to former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s view. The speech encourages the black people to fight for their freedom, to overcome the difficulties to create more strong union
For many years, American Presidents were viewed as being white and powerful leaders. Why were they only white? Is it because Americans felt Blacks were not smart enough to run a country on their own? African Americans were viewed as less dominate people and have been discriminated because of the color of their skin. In 2008, Barack Obama was elected President of the United States making him the first black president ever. In this paper, I will discuss how Barack makes a change and if America can accept him as our first black president.
The election of President Barrack Hussein Obama was one of the greatest movements in history for the United States of America. This election brought to America a symbol of change, and with that change came hope. However, were the Americans blinded by their own hopes of this change? The campaign of Obama was so focused on ‘change’, because that is what the people wanted to hear. Many people claim that Barrack Obama is a great president, who is helping the poor, and has made a monumental impact for the black communities. Yet, there seem to be more people who see past the show that Obama presents. Yes, there has been change, but in what forms has it come? When one looks at the political and non-political agenda of this president, a new light is shed. Maybe the change isn’t about being a black president; maybe it is about changing the direction of the United States government.
Not only has she graduated from two exceptional Ivy League colleges (Princeton and Harvard), she is also a lawyer. She was raised on the South Side of Chicago, had opportunities to study at prestigious universities, returned to her hometown, married, and raised two beautiful daughters. Unlike Barack, Michelle has two black parents and a black sibling, and she comes from a city readily associated with black life and politics. She even has a family tree that traces back to American slavery. Observers comfortably frame Michelle Obama as angry Sapphire figure, but how is that possible when she is one out of the few mothers who hold degrees from the most reputable schools around the world. Again, her critique was taken as evidence of her ideational anger. Michelle Obama is the most known example of an African American woman who has worked hard to become who she is today and is probably the most idealistic perfect woman. Still the success and difficulty she has experienced in gaining accurate recognition is emblematic, if not typical, of black women’s citizenship struggles. She is still only seen as the stereotypical black woman in the eyes of supremacist even though she has out succeeded the majority of people today. One could assume that Michelle Obama is someone who could be looked to as faultless representation of how black women can achieve and obtain such incredible power. Unfortunately, not even the first lady is respected even with her credentials. For example. there were attempts to frame her with the common trope of hypersexuality. In the heat of the general election fight, Fox News referred to her as “Barack’s baby mama”. Instead she fights strong against these over rationalized comments because she knows she is better than what they say. If Michelle Obama, the First Lady of the United States, is not recognized as credible, than it is clear that no black woman will ever be
February 10, 2007, Obama announced his presidential candidacy at a rally in front of the Old State House in Springfield, Illinois, which was where Abraham Lincoln had given his famous "house divided" speech. The Obama campaign received a great huge amount of support from organizations, volunteers, and donors. Barack Obama was running against former first Lady Hillary Clinton wife of former president Bill Clinton. The Obama campaign developed a strategy for winning the Democratic nomination that relied on assembling the blacks and white liberals that had enabled him to succeed in Illinois, with an additional focus on young voters. However, Senator and former First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton opened a strong lead in the polls, even among African American voters and leaders who admired her and her husband, former President Bill Clinton. Many did not think Obama had much of a chance to win. Although, many doubted Barack wouldn’t win against Hillary Clinton he in fact beat her and she was no longer in the run for president. Hilary Clinton ...
Obama emotionally influences the nation to move forward from the issues of race that is hindering America. Without dwelling on his family tree, Obama reminds us that his father was black and his mother white, that he came from Kenya, but she came from Kansas: “I am married to a black American who carries within her the blood of slave and slave owners — an inheritance we pass on to our two precious daughters. I have brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, uncles, and cousins, of every race and every hue, scattered across three continents, and for as long as I live, I will never forget that in no other country on Earth is my story even possible.
In the autobiography, Obama entails on the beginning journey of his life from early childhood to young adulthood. The novel begins with him finding out from his aunt that his father has passed away in Nairobi. Obama’s father left him and his mother when he was only 2 years old. Obama then talks about the family he grew up with, his mother and grandparents, and the racism they dealt with at a time when few accepted interracial relations and even more so marriages. He recalls being made fun of as a young child when other kids would make monkey noises when it was discovered his father was from Kenya. He then moves to Indonesia when his mother remarries, but then at 10 years old moves back to Hawaii where he spent his early childhood. It was with his grandparents that he developed much of his character and learned how strongly education was emphasized in his family. Obama also talks about how fascinated he was with by his father. As he grows a bit older into adolescence, Obama learns more about race relations and reads the book Heart of Darkness. This book helps him to see how white people look at black people, as a white man wrote the book talking about black people. He also delves into his marijuana use, which he used to help him during this confusing and rough period in his life. Obama’s story then ...
The president of the United States of America is important role to its ability to run successfully, and smoothly. The president makes vital decisions that have huge impacts for all those involved such as, its citizens, foreign citizens, and its allies. Barack Obama made his history in 2008, when he became the first African American president. This essay will look at his background, his run for president, his achieves, future plans for America, and my opinion as a British citizen.
With the whole United States watching Martin Luther King Jr. told the world about his dreams. Just as he would not rest until his voice was heard, African American literature would not stop either. Together they opened the American’s eye to the lives being lived by many African Americans for the first time. Many of these stories, poems, essays, and plays held common themes of having dreams, dreams with which could not be achieved due to the overbearing power of the White man, dreams just like that of Martin Luther King Jr. The theme of racism inhibiting the chance for African Americans to better themselves is common in American literature up until the late 1900’s. The poem “Harlem” by Langston Hughes, the essay “Black Men and Public Space” by Brent Staples, the play “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry, and the short story “Desiree’s Baby” by Kate Chopin all adhere to this theme. This theme is made clear in these works through the use of setting, characterization, and language.