President Barack Obama is set to take the stage tonight [July 27] at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) like he did this very day, 12 long years ago.
It was the 2004 DNC in Boston, Massachusetts and the nominees were John Kerry and John Edwards, a campaign that unfortunately lost to George W. Bush. A younger, then-Illinois State Senator Barack Obama graced the podium and gave a keynote address that had everyone in the building riled up and chanting his name. He stressed the importance of unity stating “There’s not a liberal America and a conservative America—there’s the United States of America.” He spoke on his own upbringing as a child of an immigrant father from Kenya and a white mother from Kansas, growing up in the state of Hawaii. Obama denounced the perception that a book in a Black youth’s hand equaled them “acting white” while acknowledging the fact that “In no other country on Earth is my story even possible.” He spoke with such poise, it was no wonder why four years after this address he was accepting his party’s nomination for the presidency of these United States.
For the third night of the convention, the theme is “Working Together” and many are anticipating President Obama’s speech, especially since his wife Michelle Obama gave hers with such eloquence on Monday night [July 25]. In addition to the President, Vice President Joe Biden is also scheduled to lay down words of wisdom in support of Hillary Clinton.
Pregame for tonight’s speech with a quick recap of the President’s words from 2004:
