President Barack Obama: Speeches that Resonate

Photo: WhiteHouse.gov

By Tatiana Golden                                                                 

Our first black and 44th president, Barack Obama, has broken barriers and become one of the most successful presidents in American history. The one thing that many people love most about Obama and the primary reason he became president is his beautiful public speaking. Many feel he is the best speaker in the world. His speeches captivate audiences in ways that still resonate with us till this day. To most people and politicians the speech he gave at the Democratic National Convention on July, 2004 in Boston, Massachusetts was the best speech in politics.

He starts off his speech talking about where he came from. His father, who was born in a small village in Kenya, moved to America to have an education and the American dream. His mother, who was born in Kansas, set an example of work hard and working for your dream. Obama talks not about our economy, or our military, but how we are all equal. That our founding fathers who wrote the Declaration of Independence said, all men are created equal.

It’s almost like Obama pointing out don’t forget what America is all about and what it stands for, by showing and expressing it. Obama said something that speaks to politicians, government, and the country of the United States, “There is more work to be done.” Americans live and breathe hard work, to have a stable job, a good education and a home. But Obama added that we need somebody that will help change our priorities.

He then talks about John Kerry, who was the Democratic presidential candidate of the 2004 election, but later lost to George Bush. He talks about John Kerry as a president who will represent that change. The one thing that Obama said that caught my attention was “He will never sacrifice our basic liberties or use faith as a wedge to divide us. And he will not put war first. He would work to make sure that the troops come back home safety, to win the war, and to end with peace and respect throughout the world.”

There was one thing he always talked about during the convention and throughout his presidential career, that we are all connected as one people. If a child is poor, a black man is prosecuting wrongly, or a military man is homeless, it will affect me too, because "I am my brother’s or sister’s keeper.” He points out that this is the United States of America. We have to be united as black, white, Latinos, and Asians, because we all have the same dream and the same purpose.

Obama also talks about something he said throughout his presidential career, hope. Hoping that we will find freedom for all people and hope for the middle class, where they could find a stable job. American’s greatest gift and anchor is belief. Obama said “a belief that is unseen.” We could make the right choices as Americans. Barack Obama ends his speech, “Out of this political darkness, a brighter day will come.”


Tatiana Golden is a sophomore from The Bronx, New York at St. Thomas Aquinas College. She is majoring in Psychology with a minor in Journalism..