Garry Willis 'Two Speeches Based Upon Race'

In the essay by Garry Willis called “Two Speeches Based Upon Race”, he references important beliefs that Lincoln held about the United States while also referencing Obama who had a subtle theme that is also present in some of Martin Luther King Jr’s writings.
According to Garry Willis, Lincoln was accused of not being observant of the United States Constitution simply because William Lloyd Garrison supported his party (Two Speeches). As the author states, this accusation is simply not true. Lincoln was the eternal protector of the Constitution. In Lincoln’s first inaugural, he makes it clear that he will stick by the Constitution. He claims that the Constitution does not give him “lawful right” to “interfere with the institution of slavery” even though he thinks slavery is

against human rights (first inaugural).

In The Fiery Trial, Foner states that “he had consistently coupled assurances that he would not interfere with slavery in the states” because of the Constitution, however, “with a moral condemnation of the institution” (152). Furthermore, Lincoln upheld the Fugitive Slave Act even though he did not agree with it since the law was in the Constitution. In the first inaugural, he states plainly that “no person held to service or labor in one State, under the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall in consequence of any law or regulation therein be discharged from such service or labor, but shall be delivered up on claim of the party to whom such service or labor may be due” (inaugural). However, Lincoln also stood up for the Constitution because of what it implied. The Constitution does not refer to slaves at all but to “persons who perform services of labor” and “not an express statement of property” (Willis). This meant that “the founders, who had set forth ‘a standard maxim for free men,’

believed slavery would eventually die” (freedom 92). Lincoln, therefore, refused to expand slavery to the new states in the west since it would prolong slavery in the United States. Hence, Lincoln obeyed the Constitution, but, also, used it to his advantage when possible.
In Obama’s speech addressing racial tensions in the United States, he touched on the fact that he had “never been so naïve as to believe that we can get beyond our racial divisions in a single election cycle, or with a single candidacy—particularly a candidacy as imperfect as my own” (Willis). In summary, racial divisions take time to heal. There will be ups and downs in race relations, but, over time, situations will improve. Martin Luther King Jr. makes a similar statement in his final presidential address “Where Do We Go From Here?”, when he says “that the road ahead will not always be smooth. There will still be rocky places of frustration and meandering points of bewilderment. There will be inevitable setbacks here and there” (Howard-Pitney 155). Conversely, Obama says the situation will never be perfect, but will improve generation after generation (Willis). Martin Luther King also knew this for he states, “But in spite of a decade of significant progress, the problem is far from solved…And so we still have a long, long way to go before we reach the promised land of freedom” (Howard-Pitney 148). Both touch on the fact that race relations will progress over time, but there will be set backs while still moving forward.
It is evident that Lincoln was a great supporter of the Constitution even though following it meant going against his moral values. The Constitution always came first. Obama presents the theme that even though racial tension may be flawed now, they will mend as time progresses. Martin Luther King Jr expressed similar sentiments.