"You know, when Trayvon Martin was first shot, I said that this could have been my son. Another way of saying that is Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago." Obama said this closer to the beginning of his speech and they are the two lines that get quoted on the news than any other part of his speech. It is not hard to understand what he is talking about. There is still a stigma in America that minorities are looked down upon in many ways. History has shown us that this has always been the case. Starting with slavery and indentured servitude to the Jim Crowe laws to interracial marriage laws. And to this day there is still a remnant of this treatment. This remnant, however, has shifted for the most part away from laws that put African-Americans down. It has switched to a social construct. A construct that has changed most people's feelings from disgust and hatred to fear and uneasiness. Don't get me wrong there are still plenty of people out there who hate African-Americans, but I hope they are a dying breed. Obama knows and has been part of a time where it was still ok to hate and fear African-Americans. He has been in Trayvon Martin's shoes. And this is something a vast majority of the white population can't say.
The other major point brought up by Obama is discussing race anywhere but the House and the Senate. This according to a lot of news stations is something that is almost a hushed subject like having an abortion in the early nineties; it was just something you would not talk about. And this is something I feel is very wrong with America. Sadly there are a lot of people that can not have an educated discussion about many topics but that does not mean they should not be avoided or swept under the rug. A man of Obama's power saying to America "Discuss race" is amazing to me. Everyone should feel free to discuss hot topics. And who knows some may be better for it.
"We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools." Martin Luther King Jr.
