This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/14/obama-presidency-verdict-jesse-jackson
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Jesse Jackson on Obama: 'He struggled to create hope – and succeeded' | Jesse Jackson on Obama: 'He struggled to create hope – and succeeded' |
| (30 days later) | |
| The Reverend Jesse Jackson, 71, is a Baptist minister and veteran of America's civil rights struggle. He campaigned for the Democrat presidential nomination in 1984 | The Reverend Jesse Jackson, 71, is a Baptist minister and veteran of America's civil rights struggle. He campaigned for the Democrat presidential nomination in 1984 |
| For me, Barack Obama's election was a milestone of the most extraordinary kind. On the day he was elected I felt such hope in my heart. I thought we were seeing the beginning of a new era of equal opportunity across race and gender such as America had never known before. | For me, Barack Obama's election was a milestone of the most extraordinary kind. On the day he was elected I felt such hope in my heart. I thought we were seeing the beginning of a new era of equal opportunity across race and gender such as America had never known before. |
| What has saddened me most over the past four years is the mean-spirited way in which he has been hindered by the opposition. We have never known such obstruction before: the name-calling concerning his Americanness, his place of birth, his religion. We had lost 4 million jobs the month before he was elected. But his critics' mission was not to create jobs, or to end the radical downward economic spiral the US had been locked into; their mission was to defeat him, to sink the ship. He has remained above that and lent a consistently high tone to his presidency and thus to the country itself. | What has saddened me most over the past four years is the mean-spirited way in which he has been hindered by the opposition. We have never known such obstruction before: the name-calling concerning his Americanness, his place of birth, his religion. We had lost 4 million jobs the month before he was elected. But his critics' mission was not to create jobs, or to end the radical downward economic spiral the US had been locked into; their mission was to defeat him, to sink the ship. He has remained above that and lent a consistently high tone to his presidency and thus to the country itself. |
| Ironically, he has reached out and turned the toxic resistance to his leadership, the unusual level of ugly antipathy, into something positive and life-affirming. In the war for the soul of America, he has struggled to create hope – and succeeded. Hope is growing and must prevail. I truly believe he has made society more optimistic and I look forward to his winning this election and continuing to do so. The way he works to remove barriers across society is a constant inspiration to me. He is a man of immense ability. | Ironically, he has reached out and turned the toxic resistance to his leadership, the unusual level of ugly antipathy, into something positive and life-affirming. In the war for the soul of America, he has struggled to create hope – and succeeded. Hope is growing and must prevail. I truly believe he has made society more optimistic and I look forward to his winning this election and continuing to do so. The way he works to remove barriers across society is a constant inspiration to me. He is a man of immense ability. |
| It is imperative that the American people come out together to vote on 6 November. All the arrows are pointing upwards now and if we can harness enough of them we can finally work our way out of the very deep dark corner where we found ourselves four years ago.There is too much poverty, too much inequality, too much violence in this country, meaning that life expectancy for too many is cut short. If we can work together to end that we will become a stronger nation and a stronger asset to the whole world. | It is imperative that the American people come out together to vote on 6 November. All the arrows are pointing upwards now and if we can harness enough of them we can finally work our way out of the very deep dark corner where we found ourselves four years ago.There is too much poverty, too much inequality, too much violence in this country, meaning that life expectancy for too many is cut short. If we can work together to end that we will become a stronger nation and a stronger asset to the whole world. |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. | |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. Enter your email address to subscribe. |