The definition of progress is forward or onward movement toward a destination. In Barack Obama’s speech of “A More Perfect Union”, he talks about the progress of our country towards a more perfect union. Obama delivers the speech in March 2008, responding to the controversial statements made by his former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright. In “Graduation”, by Maya Angelou, she writes about her eighth grade graduation, which is a defining moment in her life as an African American. There are many similarities between Angelou and Obama’s writing, which reflects one of Obama’s purposes in his speech for each race to forgive past grievances and move on.
Obama’s vision of moving toward a more perfect union is everyone working together. Obama spoke, “..that working together we can move beyond some of our old racial wounds, and that in fact …show more content…
Obama asserts, “In the white community, the path to a more perfect union means acknowledging that what ails the African American community does not just exist in the minds of black people; that the legacy of discrimination-and current incidents of discrimination, while less overt than in the past-are real and must be addressed” (659). The white community must realize the oppression that the African American community suffers through, that the racial discrimination is not fake, but in fact very real.. The white community needed to acknowledge that the African Americans were not imagining discrimination because it is real. Angelou writes, “It was awful to be a negro and have no control over my life. It was brutal to be young and already trained to sit quietly and listen to charges brought against my color with no chance of defense” (29). Angelou is expression her feelings about her life, as an African American. Angelou’s experience is proof of the oppression that African Americans suffer through. Acknowledgement will help America move toward a more perfect
Obama’s vision of moving toward a more perfect union is everyone working together. Obama spoke, “..that working together we can move beyond some of our old racial wounds, and that in fact …show more content…
Obama asserts, “In the white community, the path to a more perfect union means acknowledging that what ails the African American community does not just exist in the minds of black people; that the legacy of discrimination-and current incidents of discrimination, while less overt than in the past-are real and must be addressed” (659). The white community must realize the oppression that the African American community suffers through, that the racial discrimination is not fake, but in fact very real.. The white community needed to acknowledge that the African Americans were not imagining discrimination because it is real. Angelou writes, “It was awful to be a negro and have no control over my life. It was brutal to be young and already trained to sit quietly and listen to charges brought against my color with no chance of defense” (29). Angelou is expression her feelings about her life, as an African American. Angelou’s experience is proof of the oppression that African Americans suffer through. Acknowledgement will help America move toward a more perfect