Thank you
so much. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much.
Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Dick Durbin. You
make us all proud.
On behalf of the great state of Illinois, crossroads of a nation,
Land of Lincoln, let me express my deepest gratitude for the
privilege of addressing this convention.
Tonight is a particular honor for me because — let’s face it — my
presence on this stage is pretty unlikely. My father was a foreign
student, born and raised in a small village in Kenya. He grew up
herding goats, went to school in a tin-roof shack. His father — my
grandfather — was a cook, a domestic servant to the British.
But my grandfather had larger dreams for his son. Through hard work
and perseverance my father got a scholarship to study in a magical
place, America, that shone as a beacon of freedom and opportunity to
so many who had come before.
While studying here, my father met my mother. She was born in a town
on the other side of the world, in Kansas. Her father worked on oil
rigs and farms through most of the Depression. The day after Pearl
Harbor my grandfather signed up for duty; joined Patton’s army,
marched across Europe. Back home, my grandmother raised their baby
and went to work on a bomber assembly line. After the war, they
studied on the G.I. Bill, bought a house through F.H.A., and later
moved west all the way to Hawaii in search of opportunity.
And they, too, had big dreams for their daughter. A common dream,
born of two continents.
My parents shared not only an improbable love, they shared an
abiding faith in the possibilities of this nation. They would give
me an African name, Barack, or ”blessed,” believing that in a
tolerant America your name is no barrier to success. They imagined
me going to the best schools in the land, even though they weren’t
rich, because in a generous America you don’t have to be rich to
achieve your potential.
They are both passed away now. And yet, I know that, on this night,
they look down on me with great pride.
I stand here today, grateful for the diversity of my heritage, aware
that my parents’ dreams live on in my two precious daughters. I
stand here knowing that my story is part of the larger American
story, that I owe a debt to all of those who came before me, and
that, in no other country on earth, is my story even possible.
Tonight, we gather to affirm the greatness of our nation — not
because of the height of our skyscrapers, or the power of our
military, or the size of our economy. Our pride is based on a very
simple premise, summed up in a declaration made over two hundred
years ago: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men
are created equal. That they are endowed by their Creator with
certain inalienable rights. That among these are life, liberty and
the pursuit of happiness.’
That is the true genius of America — a faith in simple dreams,, an
insistence on small miracles. That we can tuck in our children at
night and know that they are fed and clothed and safe from harm.
That we can say what we think, write what we think, without hearing
a sudden knock on the door. That we can have an idea and start our
own business without paying a bribe. That we can participate in the
political process without fear of retribution, and that our votes
will be counted at least, most of the time.
This year, in this election, we are called to reaffirm our values
and our commitments, to hold them against a hard reality and see how
we are measuring up, to the legacy of our forbearers, and the
promise of future generations.
And fellow Americans, Democrats, Republicans, Independents — I say
to you tonight: we have more work to do. More work to do for the
workers I met in Galesburg, Ill., who are losing their union jobs at
the Maytag plant that’s moving to Mexico, and now are having to
compete with their own children for jobs that pay seven bucks an
hour. More to do for the father that I met who was losing his job
and choking back the tears, wondering how he would pay $4,500 a
month for the drugs his son needs without the health benefits that
he counted on. More to do for the young woman in East St. Louis, and
thousands more like her, who has the grades, has the drive, has the
will, but doesn’t have the money to go to college.
Now don’t get me wrong. The people I meet — in small towns and big
cities, in diners and office parks — they don’t expect government to
solve all their problems. They know they have to work hard to get
ahead — and they want to.
Go into the collar counties around Chicago, and people will tell you
they don’t want their tax money wasted, by a welfare agency or by
the Pentagon.
Go into any inner city neighborhood, and folks will tell you that
government alone can’t teach our kids to learn — they know that
parents have to teach, that children can’t achieve unless we raise
their expectations and turn off the television sets and eradicate
the slander that says a black youth with a book is acting white.
They know those things.
People don’t expect government to solve all their problems. But they
sense, deep in their bones, that with just a slight change in
priorities, we can make sure that every child in America has a
decent shot at life, and that the doors of opportunity remain open
to all.
They know we can do better. And they want that choice.
In this election, we offer that choice. Our Party has chosen a man
to lead us who embodies the best this country has to offer. And that
man is John Kerry. John Kerry understands the ideals of community,
faith, and service because they’ve defined his life. From his heroic
service to Vietnam, to his years as a prosecutor and lieutenant
governor, through two decades in the United States Senate, he has
devoted himself to this country. Again and again, we’ve seen him
make tough choices when easier ones were available.
His values — and his record — affirm what is best in us. John Kerry
believes in an America where hard work is rewarded; so instead of
offering tax breaks to companies shipping jobs overseas, he offers
them to companies creating jobs here at home.
John Kerry believes in an America where all Americans can afford the
same health coverage our politicians in Washington have for
themselves.
John Kerry believes in energy independence, so we aren’t held
hostage to the profits of oil companies, or the sabotage of foreign
oil fields.
John Kerry believes in the Constitutional freedoms that have made
our country the envy of the world, and he will never sacrifice our
basic liberties, nor use faith as a wedge to divide us.
And John Kerry believes that in a dangerous world war must be an
option sometimes, but it should never be the first option.
You know, a while back, I met a young man named Seamus in a V.F.W.
Hall in East Moline, Ill.. He was a good-looking kid, six two, six
three, clear eyed, with an easy smile. He told me he’d joined the
Marines, and was heading to Iraq the following week. And as I
listened to him explain why he’d enlisted, the absolute faith he had
in our country and its leaders, his devotion to duty and service, I
thought this young man was all that any of us might hope for in a
child. But then I asked myself: Are we serving Seamus as well as he
is serving us?
I thought of the 900 men and women — sons and daughters, husbands
and wives, friends and neighbors, who won’t be returning to their
own hometowns. I thought of the families I’ve met who were
struggling to get by without a loved one’s full income, or whose
loved ones had returned with a limb missing or nerves shattered, but
who still lacked long-term health benefits because they were
Reservists.
When we send our young men and women into harm’s way, we have a
solemn obligation not to fudge the numbers or shade the truth about
why they’re going, to care for their families while they’re gone, to
tend to the soldiers upon their return, and to never ever go to war
without enough troops to win the war, secure the peace, and earn the
respect of the world.
Now let me be clear. Let me be clear. We have real enemies in the
world. These enemies must be found. They must be pursued — and they
must be defeated. John Kerry knows this.
And just as Lieutenant Kerry did not hesitate to risk his life to
protect the men who served with him in Vietnam, President Kerry will
not hesitate one moment to use our military might to keep America
safe and secure.
John Kerry believes in America. And he knows that it’s not enough
for just some of us to prosper. For alongside our famous
individualism, there’s another ingredient in the American saga. A
belief that we’re all connected as one people.
If there is a child on the south side of Chicago who can’t read,
that matters to me, even if it’s not my child. If there’s a senior
citizen somewhere who can’t pay for their prescription drugs, and
has to choose between medicine and the rent, that makes my life
poorer, even if it’s not my grandparent. If there’s an Arab American
family being rounded up without benefit of an attorney or due
process, that threatens my civil liberties.
It is that fundamental belief, it is that fundamental belief, I am
my brother’s keeper, I am my sister’s keeper that makes this country
work. It’s what allows us to pursue our individual dreams and yet
still come together as one American family.
E pluribus unum. Out of many, one.
Now even as we speak, there are those who are preparing to divide
us, the spin masters, the negative ad peddlers who embrace the
politics of anything goes. Well, I say to them tonight, there is not
a liberal America and a conservative America — there is the United
States of America. There is not a Black America and a White America
and Latino America and Asian America — there’s the United States of
America.
The pundits, the pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into Red
States and Blue States; Red States for Republicans, Blue States for
Democrats. But I’ve got news for them, too. We worship an awesome
God in the Blue States, and we don’t like federal agents poking
around in our libraries in the Red States. We coach Little League in
the Blue States and yes, we’ve got some gay friends in the Red
States. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq and there are
patriots who supported the war in Iraq.
We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and
stripes, all of us defending the United States of America. In the
end, that’s what this election is about. Do we participate in a
politics of cynicism or do we participate in a politics of hope?
John Kerry calls on us to hope. John Edwards calls on us to hope.
I’m not talking about blind optimism here - the almost willful
ignorance that thinks unemployment will go away if we just don’t
think about it, or the health care crisis will solve itself if we
just ignore it. That’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about
something more substantial. It’s the hope of slaves sitting around a
fire singing freedom songs. The hope of immigrants setting out for
distant shores. The hope of a young naval lieutenant bravely
patrolling the Mekong Delta. The hope of a millworker’s son who
dares to defy the odds. The hope of a skinny kid with a funny name
who believes that America has a place for him, too.
Hope in the face of difficulty. Hope in the face of uncertainty. The
audacity of hope! In the end, that is God’s greatest gift to us, the
bedrock of this nation. A belief in things not seen. A belief that
there are better days ahead.
I believe that we can give our middle class relief and provide
working families with a road to opportunity. I believe we can
provide jobs to the jobless, homes to the homeless, and reclaim
young people in cities across America from violence and despair. I
believe that we have a righteous wind at our backs and that as we
stand on the crossroads of history, we can make the right choices,
and meet the challenges that face us.
America! Tonight, if you feel the same energy that I do, if you feel
the same urgency that I do, if you feel the same passion I do, if
you feel the same hopefulness that I do — if we do what we must do,
then I have no doubts that all across the country, from Florida to
Oregon, from Washington to Maine, the people will rise up in
November, and John Kerry will be sworn in as president, and John
Edwards will be sworn in as vice president, and this country will
reclaim its promise, and out of this long political darkness a
brighter day will come.
Thank you very much everybody. God bless you. Thank you.
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