Barack Obama

(http://www.myspace.com/ barackobama)

Barack Obama is a role model to many African American males today, showing that there’s no room for excuses or obstacles, which can be overcome through persistence and hope. Obama is a man of change with hopes of leading America towards a positive change as the first African American President of the United States.

(http://www.myspace.com/ barackobama)

Barack Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii on August 4, 1961 to Barack Obama, Sr. of Kenya and Ann Dunham of Kansas. Obama graduated from Columbia University in 1983, and moved to Chicago in 1985 to work for a church-based group seeking to improve living conditions in poor neighborhoods plagued with crime and high unemployment. In 1991, Obama graduated from Harvard Law School where he was the first African American president of the Harvard Law Review. Obama married his wife Michelle in 1992 and they live on Chicago’s South Side. He is a proud father of two daughters, Malia and Sasha. Obama spent seven years as an Illinois State Senator. In 2005 he was elected to the U.S. Senate.

Barack Obama has dedicated his life to public service as a community organizer, civil rights attorney, and leader in the Illinois State Senate. Throughout his political career, Barack Obama has fought for open and honest government. As an Illinois State Senator, he helped pass the state’s first major ethics reform bill in 25 years. Obama helped save many innocent lives on death row by obtaining help from law enforcement officials to videotape interrogations and confessions in all capital cases. He also established a racial profiling policy. As a U.S. Senator, he has spearheaded the effort to clean up Washington. In a short period of time, Obama has attained new heights. He has and will continue to lead the way for future inspiring young political figures.

(http://www.myspace.com/ barackobama)

A hero is someone who takes on a quest that usually involves a sacrifice or commitment to help others. Obama has made such a commitment. I would like to one day join the political arena. My primary focus would be to change the American public school system. I share a similar background to Obama, coming from a divorced family which had a major impact on my schooling. He had a shortcoming of using drugs and smoking about which he is making a change. For myself, I have a shortcoming in writing, which I will soon improve and make this weakness my strongest point. My grandparents were and have been a source of wisdom and security as is the case with Obama. Obama stands firm on his beliefs and has taken on projects that most political figures would not touch. He builds his platform on hope and change, which is what our nation needs, and he has written about it in his book, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts of Reclaiming the American Dream, published in October 2006.

Because of his many top seller books and dedicated work, Obama was listed in the October 2005 issue of the British Journal, New Statesmen, as one of 10 people who could change the world. Through the example of his steadfastness and hope, he is building a future and leading the way for us, the young black men of the 21st century, to make a change within our communities.