Barack Obama Race Discrimination Essay
Racism: the divisor of society Racism, the discrimination directed against a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior, has been around for a long time. This is a controversial topic to discuss, especially in modern times since multiple events make racism a harsh topic that affects different ethnic groups across the world. Recently, an activist movement that fights against systemic racism and unfair civilian shootings towards African-American people by police officials named Black Lives Matter has taken headlines. In response to this movement, numerous imperative political figures have talked about this controversial topic, such as United States President Barack Obama, and Republican Party candidate for the U.S presidential
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Barack Obama’s speeches are categorized as strong and powerful, especially when talking about race since he is African-American. His 2008 speech in Philadelphia is not the exception, as President Obama states that he has “faith in the American people – that working together we can move beyond some of our old racial wounds and that in fact, we have no choice if we are to continue on the path of a more perfect union.”(269-272) In this case, Obama creates an enthusiastic and motivational tone to argue the idea that America can end racial tensions if its citizens can work together as one. However, President Obama’s tone has changed dramatically over the years when talking to the people of the United States about this rather controversial topic. Eight years later when we look at the tone of President Barack Obama in his 2016 speech addressing the fatal shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, two out of the many shootings against African-Americans by police officers, the audience can observe a change of tone. In this speech, the president states that the Black Lives Matter movement “isn’t a matter of us comparing the value of lives. This is recognizing that there’s a particular burden that is being placed on a group of our fellow citizens and we should care about that”, and further states that “we can do better.”(Obama) In this speech,
Barack Obama’s speeches are categorized as strong and powerful, especially when talking about race since he is African-American. His 2008 speech in Philadelphia is not the exception, as President Obama states that he has “faith in the American people – that working together we can move beyond some of our old racial wounds and that in fact, we have no choice if we are to continue on the path of a more perfect union.”(269-272) In this case, Obama creates an enthusiastic and motivational tone to argue the idea that America can end racial tensions if its citizens can work together as one. However, President Obama’s tone has changed dramatically over the years when talking to the people of the United States about this rather controversial topic. Eight years later when we look at the tone of President Barack Obama in his 2016 speech addressing the fatal shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, two out of the many shootings against African-Americans by police officers, the audience can observe a change of tone. In this speech, the president states that the Black Lives Matter movement “isn’t a matter of us comparing the value of lives. This is recognizing that there’s a particular burden that is being placed on a group of our fellow citizens and we should care about that”, and further states that “we can do better.”(Obama) In this speech,