“Out of many, we are truly one.”
Senator Barack Obama recently made this statement in a speech that addressed race relations in our nation. This speech not only made me proud to be an American, it also solidified my belief that Barack Obama is a man for all people.
Like Senator Obama, I feel that race is a complex issue but one that we must continue to address if healing from our nation’s history of slavery and segregation is ever to take place. Senator Obama further recognizes that there are other matters that need our attention as well. People who are struggling day to day to survive; people who are illiterate or don’t have the education necessary to build the path toward the good life; people who suffer from medical conditions but don’t have the means to pay for treatment. All have felt what it’s like to be undervalued and marginalized.
Senator Obama reminds us that by facing the tough issues and investing in the well-being of all Americans, we ultimately prosper as a nation. But is it possible that the term “separate but equal” has received a makeover in the new millennium? After-all we use labels like majority and minority to describe ourselves as Americans, and by doing so we unintentionally cast ourselves into descriptives that imply inequality and imbalance.
But Senator Obama believes that we all can share in the American Dream if we work together to incite change in our thinking, change in our behaviors and change in our attitudes. He believes this is something “We can do!”
Without doubt we are a nation of diversity. Who better than Barack Obama to reflect that diversity and lead us toward a path that will incur peace and social justice for all.
Respectfully,
Rhonda M. Cartwright
Rhonda M. Cartwright's Weblog 