With profound gratitude and great humility, I accept your nomination for the presidency of the United States.
With those simple words, Barack Obama continued the historic march on Washington to fulfill the dream Martin Luther King, Jr. voiced 45 years ago. That dream of course was for an America where people “will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”
I say Obama is only continuing that march because, unlike others who see his nomination as the fulfillment of MLK’s dream, I see it as just another pioneering leap over one of the many barriers blacks have encountered on their path towards realizing their American dream. And, in this sense, Obama has more in common with Jackie Robinson than he does with Moses (as some pundits have ordained).
After all, even if Obama is elected president of the United States, his historic achievement alone will do little to eradicate racism in America. Ironically, it might reinforce the status quo – with many whites thinking that if Obama can be elected president then blacks have nothing more to complain about….
As for his speech, it was vintage Obama. In fact, watching an Obama speech during this presidential campaign has become rather like watching a Michael Phelps race during the Beijing Olympics: always a winner – thrilling and inspiring.
But I do not think his speech last night before 84,000 people in Denver will have any greater impact on the outcome of this election (or on the lives of black folks) than his speech last month before 200,000 in Berlin. Indeed, I doubt we’ll be quoting anything Obama said last night, in Berlin or earlier this summer in his seminal speech on race 45 years from now – the way we’re still quoting passages from MLK’s “I have a dream” speech. Can you even remember anything he said in Berlin?
Therefore, instead of ascribing historic significance to every speech Obama makes, let us keep our eyes on the prize, which MLK proclaimed is an America that:
…will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
That said, no one appreciates the historic significance of Obama’s nomination more than I do. But I’m convinced that if he fulfills the promises he delineated for his presidency, the benefits that will accrue to white Americans (and people all over the world) will far outweigh any symbolism his election will have for black Americans.
Before any dream can be realized or promise fulfilled, however, we must transform all of the hope he inspires into votes for Obama on Election Day!
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