Michelle Obama has once again reminded us that we hold the keys to our future!
Speaking at the Democratic National Convention on Monday night, the former FLOTUS shared a powerful keynote speech with the American people where she not only slammed Donald Trump and the culture of fear his presidency has fostered, but also encouraged citizens to practice empathy and vote like our lives depend on it.
Yes, “when they go low, we go high” is totally still her catchphrase — but it’s taken on a whole new meaning after the last four years, and especially amid the coronavirus pandemic and heightened racial tensions in recent months.
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The 56-year-old expertly painted a picture of the current social landscape from someone else’s perspective, saying that our country has become what it looks like “we stop requiring empathy of one another.” Commenting on our response to COVID-19, the fight to end systemic racism and police brutality, and how it starts at the top, she said:
“They see people shouting in grocery stores, unwilling to wear a mask to keep us all safe. They see people calling the police on folks minding their own business just because of the color of their skin. They see an entitlement that says only certain people belong here, that greed is good and winning is everything because as long as you come out on top, it doesn’t matter what happens to everyone else. And they see what happens when that lack of empathy is ginned up into outright disdain. They see our leaders labeling fellow citizens enemies of the state while emboldening torch-bearing white supremacists. They watch in horror as children are torn from their families and thrown into cages, and pepper spray and rubber bullets are used on peaceful protestors for a photo-op.”
It sounds like a far cry from the melting pot full of opportunity the US once used to be. Michelle said that these incidents are what the “next generation” will grow up remembering, despite “the goodness and the grace” that she’s personally seen in households and neighborhoods across the country. Adding an exclamation to her statement, she added:
“This is not who we want to be.”
Again, even when it feels ridiculously hard to do so, go high. She explained:
“When we use those same tactics of degrading and dehumanizing others, we just become part of the ugly noise that’s drowning out everything else. We degrade ourselves. We degrade the very causes for which we fight.”
Elsewhere in her speech, Barack Obama‘s wife also took aim at Trump’s administration, speaking from a place of experience, of course! She did not mince words while relaying why our sitting leader never was and never will be cut out for the job:
“I am one of a handful of people living today who have seen firsthand the immense weight and awesome power of the presidency. And let me once again tell you this: the job is hard. It requires clear-headed judgment, a mastery of complex and competing issues, a devotion to facts and history, a moral compass, and an ability to listen—and an abiding belief that each of the 330,000,000 lives in this country has meaning and worth.”
The Harvard Law school graduate continued:
“A president’s words have the power to move markets. They can start wars or broker peace. They can summon our better angels or awaken our worst instincts. You simply cannot fake your way through this job. As I’ve said before, being president doesn’t change who you are; it reveals who you are. Well, a presidential election can reveal who we are, too.”
Yesssss to all of this!
Michelle said she wants this election to reveal that we can collectively do the right thing after four years of enduring strife, which only appears to be getting worse:
“If you take one thing from my words tonight, it is this: if you think things cannot possibly get worse, trust me, they can; and they will if we don’t make a change in this election. If we have any hope of ending this chaos, we have got to vote for Joe Biden like our lives depend on it.”
We hope you caught that one, Perezcious readers. If you do nothing else this week, at the very least make sure you’re registered to vote this November and watch Mrs. Obama show you all what real leadership looks like in times of strife by watching the full clip (below):
[Image via NBC News/YouTube]
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