I grew up in an era of hope-not only for Black Americans but for all
Americans. It occurred to me at a young age that Dr. King was speaking
not just to the plight of Black Americans but to the plight of all
socially dispossessed Americans regardless of race or gender. He
connected the poor in Harlem to the poor in Appalachia in speech after
speech and in city after city which I believe made him a great threat
to those who prosper by creating division in America.
Then without warning, I watched helplessly from my parents' living
room as bullets killed John Kennedy, Martin Luther King and Bobby
Kennedy, felling the very leaders who called us to be agents and voices
of change. With their deaths, my hope for a better America was dashed
upon the rocks of despair.
Carl Stokes rekindled my hope and made me want to use the system to
make a better way for those without a voice. My hope, rekindled by
Mayor Stokes, lead me on my journey to City Hall-a journey that took me
to Ohio State, to Cleveland City Council, to the Ohio Senate and
finally to the Mayor's office. In my almost twenty-eight years of
active politics, I sadly watched the political process slowly become a
process, not of creating hope, but of sowing as much division as
possible in order to garner status, power and control. This division
robs us all of the change and progress we need as a country.
Six months ago, I supported Senator Hillary Clinton. My wife JoAnn
and I are friends of the Clintons. President Clinton was only the
second elected official, after the assassinations of the 1960s, to give
me hope again. Not withstanding his personal transgressions, President
Clinton loves America and tried to do as much for the same Americans
that the Kennedys and Dr. King were concerned about. But, after
watching the primary election process by the day and sometimes by the
hour, I decided that I cannot cast my vote for Senator Clinton.
On March 4th, I'm voting for Barack Obama because I want real changein our America, and he's made me hopeful that he has the intestinalfortitude to make the change which our country so sorely needs.
As an African-American, I am proud to
see Barack Obama make such an extraordinary effort to become the
President of the United States. But being Black is not enough for me to
vote against my friend. I am voting for Barack because he has rekindled
my hope again through his experience, vision and leadership for change
in a political system that has gone so awry.
Our America is in great peril and great change is needed. Whether
it's the economy, our current stance in the world, a lack of health
care for our citizens, the education of our children, the creation of
hopelessness in our inner cities, or re-knitting the fabric of the
American family, we face unparalleled challenges. If we are to be a
better America that once again offers its children hope, we cannot
continue down the same path of public discourse and execution. We must
have a President who has the courage to challenge the status-quo and
stir our inner imagination of what could be. It's that inner
imagination of what can be that has made us a great nation.
Yes, Senator Obama gives me great hope, but hope is not enough when
you're voting for a presidential candidate. I believe Barack Obama has
the experience, ability, courage and vision to translate his call for
change into a new direction for America just as other great Presidents
have in the past. He is no less qualified or able than any other
candidate, and the fact that he's poised to become the Democratic
nominee for President is testimony to the good judgment and need for
change desired by so many Americans.
On March 4th I'm casting my ballot for Barack Obama to be the
Democratic nominee for President of the United States. I believe in my
heart and soul that Senator Obama can and will bring us together as a
nation, rekindling our hope and calling upon us all to be a part of the
change we wish to see.
I'm sure that next Tuesday John, Bobby and Martin will be looking
down upon us in Ohio and wondering if hope is still alive. Make them
proud...Yes we can!
Slainte,
Rob Harrington
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