Today I am proud
Today I am proud to be American.
In 1607, when white settlers first came to the place that would eventually become the state of Virginia, they brought with them enslaved black men and women from Africa, and they started the nation on a two-century course of shame. The United States was built by the blood, sweat and tears of enslaved people of black skin, on the backs of their torture, their torment and their pain.
On December 6, 1865, the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States was ratified. It reads, "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime where of the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." On that date, suddenly, everyone in the United States, no matter their color, was free.
On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. told the nation that he had a dream for his children - a dream of equality, a dream of true freedom, a dream that encompassed not only his own children, but every child in the nation: black, white, Asian, Hispanic or whatever race they might be. That every child might someday grow up to know that they could do anything they set their minds to, and no one could stop them based on skin color.
On July 2, 1964, nearly one hundred years after the last slaves were freed, the Civil Rights Act was passed. It prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin.
On April 4, 1968, Dr. King was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, and a generation mourned his passing. People all over the world wondered if the United States would ever live up to the ideals of the American Dream.
And on November 4, 2008, Barack Obama was elected President of the United States of America.
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 to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, - That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.
Today, I believe that the United States has finally, truly lived up to its potential. We have discarded the politics of division in favor of the policies of unity. We have repudiated racism, bigotry, and hate in the most decisive way possible. We still have a long way to go, and the road will be rough, but today I believe that we will finally get there.
Ttoday I stood up and, with twenty-four children's voices along with me, I recited this promise, and for the first time in over eight years, I meant it.
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands: one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
Today we got our country back. Let's not lose it again.
Today I am finally proud to be an American.
In 1607, when white settlers first came to the place that would eventually become the state of Virginia, they brought with them enslaved black men and women from Africa, and they started the nation on a two-century course of shame. The United States was built by the blood, sweat and tears of enslaved people of black skin, on the backs of their torture, their torment and their pain.
On December 6, 1865, the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States was ratified. It reads, "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime where of the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." On that date, suddenly, everyone in the United States, no matter their color, was free.
On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. told the nation that he had a dream for his children - a dream of equality, a dream of true freedom, a dream that encompassed not only his own children, but every child in the nation: black, white, Asian, Hispanic or whatever race they might be. That every child might someday grow up to know that they could do anything they set their minds to, and no one could stop them based on skin color.
On July 2, 1964, nearly one hundred years after the last slaves were freed, the Civil Rights Act was passed. It prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin.
On April 4, 1968, Dr. King was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, and a generation mourned his passing. People all over the world wondered if the United States would ever live up to the ideals of the American Dream.
And on November 4, 2008, Barack Obama was elected President of the United States of America.
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 to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, - That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.
Today, I believe that the United States has finally, truly lived up to its potential. We have discarded the politics of division in favor of the policies of unity. We have repudiated racism, bigotry, and hate in the most decisive way possible. We still have a long way to go, and the road will be rough, but today I believe that we will finally get there.
Ttoday I stood up and, with twenty-four children's voices along with me, I recited this promise, and for the first time in over eight years, I meant it.
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands: one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
Today we got our country back. Let's not lose it again.
Click to viewToday I am finally proud to be an American.