It\u2019s a racial stalemate we\u2019ve been stuck in for years. But it also means binding our particular grievances \u2013 for better health care, and better schools, and better jobs \u2013 to the larger aspirations of all Americans \u2013 the white woman struggling to break the glass ceiling, the white man whose been laid off, the immigrant trying to feed his family. The first issue that we have to confront is violent extremism in all of its forms. The same is true for the astonishing progress within Muslim-majority countries from Kuala Lumpur to Dubai.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m talking about something more substantial. But we shouldn\u2019t use our humility as an excuse for inaction. Legalized discrimination \u2013 where blacks were prevented, often through violence, from owning property, or loans were not granted to African-American business owners, or black homeowners could not access FHA mortgages, or blacks were excluded from unions, or the police force, or fire departments \u2013 meant that black families could not amass any meaningful wealth to bequeath to future generations. I know there are those who dismiss such beliefs as happy talk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They saw that I knew the Scriptures and that many of the values I held and that propelled me in my work were values they shared. But the truth is, that isn\u2019t all that I know of the man. Moreover, the sweeping change brought by modernity and globalization led many Muslims to view the West as hostile to the traditions of Islam. This cycle of suspicion and discord must end. In ancient times and in our times, Muslim communities have been at the forefront of innovation and education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you don\u2019t, you\u2019ll be able to get the same kind of coverage that members of Congress give themselves. But I stand before you tonight because all across America something is stirring. As the Holy Koran tells us, \u201cBe conscious of God and speak always the truth.\u201d That is what I will try to do \u2013 to speak the truth as best I can, humbled by the task before us, and firm in my belief that the interests we share as human beings are far more powerful than the forces that drive us apart. Islamic culture has given us majestic arches and soaring spires; timeless poetry and cherished music; elegant calligraphy and places of peaceful contemplation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These people are a part of me. We need a President who can face the threats of the future, not keep grasping at the ideas of the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And when one of his chief advisors \u2013 the man who wrote his economic plan \u2013 was talking about the anxiety Americans are feeling, he said that we were just suffering from a \u201cmental recession,\u201d and that we\u2019ve become, and I quote, \u201ca nation of whiners.\u201d That is the spirit we need today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I stand here today, grateful for the diversity of my heritage, aware that my parents\u2019 dreams live on in my two precious daughters. And in the weeks ahead, I look forward to debating them with John McCain. The Internet and television can bring knowledge and information, but also offensive sexuality and mindless violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community. More of you have cars you can\u2019t afford to drive, credit card bills you can\u2019t afford to pay, and tuition that\u2019s beyond your reach. And we will keep our promise to every young American \u2013 if you commit to serving your community or your country, we will make sure you can afford a college education. But what the people heard instead \u2013 people of every creed and color, from every walk of life \u2013 is that in America, our destiny is inextricably linked. They have affiliates in many countries and are trying to expand their reach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the face of that young student who sleeps just three hours before working the night shift, I think about my mom, who raised my sister and me on her own while she worked and earned her degree; who once turned to food stamps but was still able to send us to the best schools in the country with the help of student loans and scholarships. But if we see this conflict only from one side or the other, then we will be blind to the truth: the only resolution is for the aspirations of both sides to be met through two states, where Israelis and Palestinians each live in peace and security.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It\u2019s a racial stalemate we\u2019ve been stuck in for years. But it also means binding our particular grievances \u2013 for better health care, and better schools, and better jobs \u2013 to the larger aspirations of all Americans \u2013 the white woman struggling to break the glass ceiling, the white man whose been laid off, the immigrant trying to feed his[…]<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":59,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-75","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/stayathomemess.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/revslider\/news-magazine-slider\/magazine4.jpg?fit=600%2C400&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":133,"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75\/revisions\/133"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stayathomemess.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}