In 2009, Barack Obama made history by becoming the first African American President of the United States. Then, in 2020, Kamala Harris became the first woman in office. Both of these people are well known for making history and guiding paths for future leaders. They’ve continued the growth of equality, in our country, and the world. Obama’s Inaugural Address’s main theme is unity. How united as a country we can begin the work to come back from past mistakes and troubles, for example, the Great Recession. Context of Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address 2009 Barack Obama was born in 1961, in Honolulu, Hawaii. His parents, Barack H. Obama, Sr., and Stanley Ann Dunham, divorced when he was two years old. He was raised by his mother and grandparents. …show more content…
Her mother was born in India and her father was born in Jamaica, so she grew up immersed in both cultures with her sister, Maya. Her parents divorced when she was seven years old, and she was raised primarily by her mother. She would go to marches, and Kamala said she “had a stroller-eye view of the Civil Rights movement”. Attending the marches at such a young age inspired her to become the leader she is today, fighting against injustice. During summers, Harris would spend time in India with her grandparents, while still staying connected to her African American roots, as her mother was very determined to make sure her two daughters grew up to be confident and proud black women. (Rothberg, Emma) After graduating high school in California, Harris moved to Washington D.C and attended Howard College with a political science and economics degree. After graduating in 1986, she moved back to California to study law at the University of California. She then began her political career in the Alameda County District Attorney's Office. Throughout her career Kamala has been known to break the status quo, in 2010 she was the first African American, and the first woman to serve as California's District Attorney. Only 6 years later, in 2016 she was elected as Senator of California, where she became a leader others should aspire to be like. She was known as “a sharp, aggressive questioner who could unnerve opposing witnesses.” (Rothberg, Emma) Now the first woman in office, Kamala has created great success and opened doors for future women. As Vice President to Biden, she pushes the “bubble” that Biden thinks about. She creates new ideas and strategies to allow for growth and change in their Presidency and America. They both fight very hard for what they believe in and work hard to try and get things accomplished. They’ve faced many
The purpose of an “inaugural address” is to inform the people of his or her intentions as a leader. Two of the most prominent inaugural addresses throughout history are Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s and Barack Obama’s. Franklin Roosevelt’s inaugural address stands the test of time because it gave the American people hope that they may overcome the terrible Great Depression. Similarly, Barack Obama’s address is well known because it inspired millions that we will be lifted out of economic crisis, but it was also remembered as the first inaugural address from an African American president. The inauguration speeches of Franklin Roosevelt and Barack Obama use the rhetorical devices parallelism, allusions, and emotive language to convey their messages
hirley kept active in politics following her retirement by co-founding the National Political Congress of Black Women and serving as its founding in 1984 until1992.
Michelle attended Whitney M. Young Magnet High School (1981), Princeton University (1981-1985) and Harvard Law School (1985-1988). Early Life, Childhood and Adult Life Michelle Obama grew up in Chicago, Illinois, which was where she was born. Her father, Fraser Robinson III, was a pump operator for the Chicago Water Department. Her mother, Marian, would stay at home and it was her number one priority to raise Michelle and her younger brother Craig. Michelle’s childhood was a happy one.
Obama is able to gain his listeners’ ears because of his clear and effective writing. In Obama’s writing various elements of rhetorical framework create a strong and persuasive argument that Obama is able to present in grabbing his audience’s attention and consideration. Seen through his writing, Obama’s use of rhetorical appeals, devices, and context create an in-depth look into the problem of the racial divide which still exist today. In writing an effective argument, Obama employ’s through rhetoric’s personal experience, historical events, religion, and the current state of things, which he asks his audience think more about. By noting that the problems of America as a whole is a problem that every citizen shares and not a problem that exist individually for different races. Obama is able to have his audience focus on the real issues Americans face moving forward. Ultimately, as it is seen prior before the speech was published and given, Obama’s intent on the direction and how his speech would be formed, along with writing techniques that were used to craft the speech, all reveal his personal knowledge of rhetoric’s and ability to write a persuasive argument. Through his speech Obama is easily able to dismisses his critics and do what he intended to do, being that he wants his audience to focus their attention on to the more serious problems that remain unsolved for American
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
Barrack Obama’s inauguration speech successfully accomplished his goal by using rhetoric to ensure our nation that we will be under safe hands. The speech is similar from ideas obtained from the founding documents and Martin Luther King’s speech to establish ‘our’ goal to get together and take some action on the problems our country is now facing. As President Barrack Obama starts his speech, he keeps himself from using ‘me’, ‘myself’, and ‘I’ and replacing it with ‘we’, ‘us’, and ‘together’ to achieve ethos. He makes sure his audience connects with him directly by making them feel at his level, and him at theirs. This way he connects to the audience, and in exchange, helps his statement of unity. Using various examples of parallelism, anaphora and refrain, Obama brands the theme of equality and togetherness in our country throughout the speech, vital to gain the respect of his audience. Obama recalls the ‘enduring strength of the constitution’ by delving into the past alluding to America’s allegiance to the Declaration of Independence by quoting “we hold these truths… that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. This expression clearly shows more ethos by reminding us that the quote of equality is of great importance today as it was the time it was written.
Obama, Barack. "President Barack Obama's Inaugural Address." The White House. Office of the Press Secretary, 21 Jan. 2009. Web. 5 Apr. 2014.
Barack Hussein Obama was born on August 4, 1961 in Honolulu Hawaii. He is of mixed parentage: his father, a black African born in Kenya, while his mother, a white American that came from Kansas. When he was six years old his parents divorced and his mother married an Indonesian oil manager. They moved to Indonesia where Obama was educated in a Roman Catholic School. He then returned back to Hawaii to continue school while living with his grandparents. Barack struggled with his own racial identity in his late teens. (Funk & Wagnalls)
On March 18, in the year 2008, Senator Barack Obama gave a speech titled “A More Perfect Union”. Obama spoke of unity and how it is a necessity if America is to succeed. He also spoke of ethnic tensions and explained how prominent of an issue racism is today. In the speech, Obama showed his love for the country and demonstrates skills all presidents should have.
In a quotation by Barack Obama on November 4, 2008, he says “That is the true genius of America-that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow”. Obama's inauguration speech mirrors the ideas expressed by that quote. Barack Obama's message in his speech is that through hope and change, we can pull the country out of recession, out of turmoil, and out of any difficult tasks we'll have ahead of us. What we have achieved shows that we can achieve it again, and the only reason these feats were achieved was because we were one nation working together. Obama successfully incorporate rhetoric into his speech to make it emotional, believable, and logical. His speech is a great representation of a well written rhetorical essay.
Obama goes on to say “We cannot solve the challenges of our time unless we solve them together.” He believes that this is the time to change, and a new generation governed by racial minorities. Obama support these claims by reiterating his own beliefs and those of the American nation. “I would not be running for President...
An overwhelming message that Obama mentions throughout the book is the idea that America can offer hope to anyone from any background; and to make sure that every person gets equal opportunity, a couple governmental changes are needed. Many times in the text he says “a new kind of politics, one that can excavate and build upon those shared understandings that pull us together as Americans,” (Obama 9). He continuously describes Abraham Lincoln as an ideal example of this quote. Lincoln, having only two years of Congressional experience, was able to become president and lead the country through som...
Sonia Sotomayor is the daughter of immigrants from Puerto Rico, the first person in her family to go to college, and a girl from the Bronx. As she walked around the public shaking hands, she answered questions regarding her health condition, her dreams as a child, her family, and her college experience.
Soon after this speech in 2008, he was also elected as the President of the United States. During this time, many people thought segregation was gone, but that was not the case, according to Obama. The challenges that African Americans face and continue to face in terms of legal, social, and economic discrimination in the United States must go. The speaker is Barack Obama, in 2008 he was an attorney. He gave this speech when he ran for the US Senate.
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.