And through the decades, he not only gave all of himself to the cause of freedom and justice, but inspired generations that followed to try to live up to his example. I’m proud to endorse these outstanding Democratic candidates who will work to get the virus under control, rebuild the economy and the middle class, and protect Americans’ health care and preexisting conditions protections from Republican assault.
Because what we do these next 76 days will echo through generations to come.
It’s district attorneys and state’s attorneys that decide whether or not to investigate and ultimately charge those involved in police misconduct. Some agencies will require wholesale rehabilitation; others should make minor improvements. It allowed for the inhumanity of slavery and failed to guarantee women — and even men who didn’t own property — the right to participate in the political process.
But embedded in this document was a North Star that would guide future generations; a system of representative government — a democracy — through which we could better realize our highest ideals. He begins his essay by noting that the work is still far from done. But watching the heightened activism of young people in recent weeks, of every race and every station, makes me hopeful.
Particularly, Obama stresses the importance of state and local elections. And yes, we should be fighting to make sure that we have a president, a Congress, a U.S. Justice Department, and a federal judiciary that actually recognize the ongoing, corrosive role that racism plays in our society and want to do something about it.
We have to mobilize to raise awareness, and we have to organize and cast our ballots to make sure that we elect candidates who will act on reform. ', LeBron James Pays $36.8 Million for Katharine Hepburn’s Former Beverly Hills Compound, Arthritis Treatments Your Doctor May Not Share, NXIVM: Clare Bronfman sentenced to nearly 7 years in sex-cult case, Pierce Brosnan Praises Wife Keely Shaye Smith on Her 57th Birthday: 'Thank God for You Angel Heart', School Staffer Gets Jail for Sexually Abusing Boy, Telling Him He 'Deserved Special Things', The Woman That Changed Kevin Costner Is Amazing, Watch Chris Cuomo Remind Ted Cruz That Trump 'Said Your Wife Was Ugly', Tennessee Woman Says She Was Kicked Out of Gym for Wearing Only a Sports Bra, 6 Atlanta Police Officers Charged With Excessive Force Following Weekend Protests, Minnesota Files Human Rights Complaint Against the Minneapolis Police Department, Jay-Z and Roc Nation Take Out Full-Page Ads Dedicated to George Floyd.
The overwhelming majority of participants have been peaceful, courageous, responsible, and inspiring. We have to do both. Senator, I told him that I stood on his shoulders. A big city may need one set of reforms; a rural community may need another. In so many ways, John’s life was exceptional. They deserve our respect and support, not condemnation — something that police in cities like Camden and Flint have commendably understood. Like us on Facebook to see similar stories, McEnany: Trump has ‘condemned’ white supremacy, but 'shameful' media won't cover it, Sports agent Drew Rosenhaus: 'I am very worried' about NFL season after Titans coronavirus cases. “If we want our criminal justice system, and American society at large, to operate on a higher ethical code, then we have to model that code ourselves,” Obama writes. President Obama then provides a toolkit for others who are interested in taking up his call. “Let’s get to work.”. He believed that in all of us, there exists the capacity for great courage, a longing to do what’s right, a willingness to love all people, and to extend to them their God-given rights to dignity and respect. We will miss him dearly. The former president then notes that Americans shouldn’t have to choose between protest and politics, and that he “couldn’t disagree more” with the idea that only direct action can cure the criminal justice system of racial bias and that voting in new elected officials is futile. On the other hand, the small minority of folks who’ve resorted to violence in various forms, whether out of genuine anger or mere opportunism, are putting innocent people at risk, compounding the destruction of neighborhoods that are often already short on services and investment and detracting from the larger cause. I first met John when I was in law school, and I told him then that he was one of my heroes. But the elected officials who matter most in reforming police departments and the criminal justice system work at the state and local levels. Read writing from Barack Obama on Medium. Sign up for Rolling Stone’s Newsletter. If, going forward, we can channel our justifiable anger into peaceful, sustained, and effective action, then this moment can be a real turning point in our nation’s long journey to live up to our highest ideals. Many welcomed his essay, which calls in a “new generation of activists” to “shape strategies that best fit the times.” The essay was written in response to the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the protests that have surged across the United States in response. Read writing from Barack Obama on Medium. But eventually, aspirations have to be translated into specific laws and institutional practices — and in a democracy, that only happens when we elect government officials who are responsive to our demands.
Lastly, Obama writes that activists need to make specific demands, which will make it harder for officials to “pay lip service” to the cause. While President Trump reportedly has “nothing to say” to a nation protesting the death of George Floyd and other black victims of police brutality, former President Barack Obama penned an essay Monday about “how to make this moment a real turning point to bring about real change.”, I wrote out some thoughts on how to make this moment a real turning point to bring about real change––and pulled together some resources to help young activists sustain the momentum by channeling their energy into concrete action.
Former US President Barack Obama has taken to the self-publishing platform Medium to write an essay about social justice in the United States. But he never believed that what he did was more than any citizen of this country might do. In the essay, which he posted to Medium, Obama lays out three “basic lessons” the new generation of activists can draw from the past. President Obama ran on the platform of “change” in 2008, and his rousing “Yes, we can” campaign slogan motivated voters of all ages.
Good evening, everybody. He notes that every community has different needs, but cites a policing-practices tool kit developed by the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.
It’s fitting that the last time John and I shared a public forum was at a virtual town hall with a gathering of young activists who were helping to lead this summer’s demonstrations in the wake of George Floyd’s death. The toolkit was developed by the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and is based on work conducted by the Task Force on 21st Century Policing. I recognize that these past few months have been hard and dispiriting — that the fear, sorrow, uncertainty, and hardship of a pandemic have been compounded by tragic reminders that prejudice and inequality still shape so much of American life. When I was elected President of the United States, I hugged him on the inauguration stand before I was sworn in and told him I was only there because of the sacrifices he made.
…. Early on, he embraced the principles of nonviolent resistance and civil disobedience as the means to bring about real change in this country, understanding that such tactics had the power not only to change laws, but to change hearts and minds as well. They deserve our respect and support, not condemnation — something that police in cities like Camden and Flint have commendably understood.
John Lewis — one of the original Freedom Riders, chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, the youngest speaker at the March on Washington, leader of the march from Selma to Montgomery, Member of Congress representing the people of Georgia for 33 years — not only assumed that responsibility, he made it his life’s work. …, My Statement on the Passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Let Me Tell You About My Friend Joe Biden, My Statement on the Passing of Rep. John Lewis, How to Make this Moment the Turning Point for Real Change. https://t.co/jEczrOeFdv, — Barack Obama (@BarackObama) June 1, 2020. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.”, It is a great honor to be back in Ebenezer Baptist Church, in the pulpit of its greatest pastor, Dr. …, America is a constant work in progress.
James wrote to the believers, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. As millions of people across the country take to the streets and raise their voices in response to the killing of George Floyd and the ongoing problem of unequal justice, many people have reached out asking how we can sustain momentum to bring about real change. And it’s because he saw the best in all of us that he will continue, even in his passing, to serve as a beacon in that long journey towards a more perfect union. So the bottom line is this: if we want to bring about real change, then the choice isn’t between protest and politics. Obama concludes with the same message that he laid out in his 2008 president campaign: that he is hopeful. It’s mayors and county executives that appoint most police chiefs and negotiate collective bargaining agreements with police unions. It wasn’t a perfect document. See where your favorite artists and songs rank on the Rolling Stone Charts. I saw an elderly black woman being interviewed today in tears because the only grocery store in her neighborhood had been trashed.
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Dad, husband, President, citizen. “If, going forward, we can channel our justifiable anger into peaceful, sustained, and effective action, then this moment can be a real turning point in our nation’s long journey to live up to our highest ideals,” he writes. What gives each new generation purpose is to take up the unfinished work of the last and carry it further — to speak out for what’s right, to challenge an unjust status quo, and to imagine a better world.