2008 Democratic National Convention: Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by Jesse
Jackson Jr., Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Illinois
DENVER, Aug. 25 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a transcript of a
speech, as prepared for delivery, by Jesse Jackson Jr., at the Democratic
National Convention on Monday, August 25, 2008:
Scheduled for delivery: August 25, 2008 - 7:00-8:00 pm MT
EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE ON DELIVERY
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080331/DNCCLOGO )
I'm sure Dr. King is looking down on us here in Denver, noting that this is
the first political convention in history to take place within sight of his
mountaintop.
On the day President Johnson submitted the Voting Rights Act to Congress, he
said, "At times, history and fate meet at a single time in a single place to
shape a turning point in man's unending search for freedom."
So it was at Lexington and Concord. So it was at Appomattox. So it was in
Selma, Alabama. Tonight, I would like to add: and so it shall be in Denver,
Colorado, with the nomination of Barack Obama to be President of the United
States.
What a remarkable thing it is that the man who came to this convention four
years ago as the keynote speaker is returning this year as our party's
nominee. But for those of us who've known Barack over his decade in public
office in Illinois the yearning for change, the hunger for unity that he's
tapped into across the country has a familiar ring.
I remember when Barack first decided to run for the United States Senate. He'd
had a remarkable career in the state Senate, reaching across the aisle to put
a tax cut into the pockets of working families, to expand health care for more
children and parents and to take on the lobbyists who had so much influence in
Springfield.
But despite this record, most in Springfield didn't take his candidacy all
that seriously. The party establishment was skeptical of this young leader
from the South Side. They didn't know what to make of a man like Barack, with
a father from Kenya, a mother from Kansas and a funny name that few could
pronounce. They didn't see how this former community organizer could possibly
defeat candidates with more money, more name recognition and more backing from
"all the right people."
But here's the thing: that race wasn't going to be decided in the halls of
power in Springfield or the high rises on the lakefront. It was not going to
be decided by the power brokers or opinion shapers. It was going to be decided
by the people of Illinois. Illinois is America. It's great cities and small
towns, it's old factories and new industries, it's timeless Midwestern values
of faith, family and hard work. And it's black and white and Latino all living
together, as one Illinois family, as one America. And the people of Illinois
were hungry for change. From the old factory towns of our industrial north to
the farms of our agrarian south, families had been struggling to meet the
challenges of our global economy. And more often than not, they'd been harmed,
rather than helped, by economic policies that failed to them get ahead and
reach for their dreams.
But what they heard from Barack as he traveled across the state was a message
of hope. Whether he was upstate or downstate; whether he was talking with
folks who'd been laid off and seen their jobs shipped overseas or families
struggling to keep up with rising costs; whether he was talking with recent
immigrants who wanted to know that America had a place for them too, or
African Americans who were falling further and further behind, Barack spoke of
the same powerful idea. The idea that's at the heart of who Barack is. The
idea that's at the heart of who we are as Americans. And the idea that's at
the heart of this campaign. That we all have a stake in each other; that the
well-being of the "we" depends on the well-being of the "he" and "she"; and
that in this country we rise and fall together as one people, as one nation.
And what I saw in that campaign is what I'm seeing today: ordinary men and
women of all races, all religions, all walks of life coming together to demand
a government in Washington that's as honest and decent, as purposeful and
responsible as the American people.
Fellow Democrats, this is an historic moment. I know. I grew up with the
lessons of another generation, my father's generation. I know his stories of
struggle and sacrifice, of fear and division. I know America is still a place
where dreams are too often deferred and opportunities too often denied.
But here's what I also know. I know that while America may not be perfect, our
union can always be perfected. I know what we can achieve when good people
with strong convictions come together around a common purpose. And I know what
a great leader can do to help us find common ground. America, we need such a
leader today, a leader who can heal the wounds of the last eight years, a
leader who knows that what unites us is greater than what divides us and that
America is at its strongest when hard work is rewarded and all of our dreams
are within reach.
I know Barack Obama. I've seen his leadership at work. I've seen the
difference he's made in the lives of people across Illinois. And that is why I
know that for the sake of our children, our families, and the future we hold
in common, he is the leader America needs right now. Forty-five years to the
day after a young preacher called out, "Let freedom ring," let history show in
this fourth week of August in this Mile-High City, freedom in America has
never rung from a higher mountaintop than it does here today.
SOURCE 2008 Democratic National Convention Committee
Democratic National Convention Press Office, +1-720-362-2006
