Women for Obama
My wise friend (who incidentally is called Wisdom) once said "if you dont have a good wife behind you, you cant be succesful". Hmm.. very insightful. Now that puts Obama steps ahead of Clinton does'nt it? The way I see it, if Obama cant get the job done (which he can), then he gets the vote just for being set up for success - a president is only as good as his counsel.
Michelle gave this speech at a 'women for Obama' event in April, with support like this who can go wrong?
Michelle Obama:
This is just a wonderful event. The more I go out, the more I realize that there is something going on. This is, this is a movement! This is something bigger than Barack Obama or Michelle Obama or anyone else in this room. Don’t you just feel it? It is amazing. (applause)
So, I am honored to be here. Over the last few months I’ve had an opportunity to take a few trips around the country with Barack, you may have read some of them. Most recently, I’ve been doing trips on my own. We try to take the girls when we can. The one thing people are most curious about of me, particularly the women, they want to know "how are you doing?" I mean, "how are you doing?" I’m like, "I know, I know". They really want to know how am I balancing this stuff. Balancing being a mother, a professional, a campaigner, a wife, a woman, right? And they want to know how have things changed for us over the course of this journey.
What I tell them is that essentially, like many women, I’m doing a whole lot of juggling. Juggling! We all do it. I’ve found that this period has been both challenging and thrilling at the same time for me. I’ve had to cut back on my hours at work. (Smirks) It’s okay. (audience laughs) I love my job, but I can’t, I have to pick one. That has given me some more time. With Barack away even more, my focus has been trying to keep my kids sane through all this. That is first and foremost for us, making sure Melia and Sasha stay in their routine as much as possible, for as long as possible. Barack and I measure how well we are doing by saying, "how are the girls?" And they are just fine. They are going to ballet and gymnastics, they care about the next play date, the next pizza party, and then there is their school. I have to worry about, making sure we are on point academically, that we go to all the parent-teacher conferences, and Barack still goes to those. It is quite a scheduling feat, but we make it happen; presentations, school plays. You all know the drill.
I would not be able to do it without this particular table, right here. These are the women in my life, my mother, momma Kay, the girl’s godmothers, girlfriends of mine who help me shuttle and keep me held up. I want my mother and momma Kay to stand. You gotta stand up. (audience applauds) As you will find, they’re also a little mischievous too.
And, at the same time, I’m still trying to find time for myself, getting the hair done, (audience laughs) yeah, come on, let’s not pretend we don’t know that getting the hair and nails done is important, and getting a workout ladies. That’s one of the things I always talk about, gotta exercise, so I am still trying to do that. And to top it all off, I have the pleasure of doing it all in front of the watchful eyes of our friends in the back. (audience laughs, Michelle waves to media) What’s up people? (more laughter) Other than that, things haven’t changed much. (laughter)
But seriously, with the exception of the campaign trail and life in the public eye, I have to say that my life now is not really that much different from many of yours. I wake up every morning wondering how on earth I am going to pull off that next minor miracle to get through the day. I know that everybody in this room is going through this. That is the dilemma women face today. Every woman that I know, regardless of race, education, income, background, political affiliation, is struggling to keep her head above water. We try to convince ourselves that somehow doing it all is a badge of honor, but for many of us it is a necessity and we have to be very careful not to lose ourselves in the process. More often than not, we as women, are the primary caretakers in our households, scheduling babysitters, planning play dates, keeping up with regular doctor’s appointments; this was my week last week, supervising homework, handing our discipline. Usually we are the ones in charge of keeping the household together. I know you men, I know that you guys try to do your part, but the reality is that we’re doing it, right? (laughter and applause) Laundry, cleaning, cooking, shopping, home repairs. You know Barack has my back, he’s right there with me, feels my pain, and all that. (laughter)
And, for those of us who work outside of the home as well, we have the additional challenge of coordinating these things with our job responsibilities. How many of us have had to be the ones, when a child gets sick, who is the one who stays home? Or, when a toilet overflows? This was a couple of months ago. I was scrambling around to reschedule being at a 9 o’clock meeting and Barack, love him to death, put on his clothes and he left! (laughter)
To top it off we have the added social pressure of looking good, staying slim, don’t add pounds, gotta look good with wardrobe pulled together, and we have to be in good spirits, right? (laughter) Ready to be supportive of our significant others. I’m tired just thinking about it. (laughter) But, again, these are not challenges that are unique to me. I say this all the time and people think I’m being modest. But, the truth is that my experiences tell me that we as women are facing what I call "the next level of challenges", balancing work, family, ourselves differently than ever before. My mother says this all the time. She’s like "I don’t know how you do it" and she means it.
We have made great strides with regards to equality at all levels of society and because of the struggles so many have fought, many of you right in this room, I know that my daughters can dream big. They really can. There is no ceiling. They can envision themselves anyway that they want, surgeons, Supreme Court justices, basketball stars, they have images that I never had growing up. But I wonder, what is the unspoken cost that having it all takes on us. If we’re scurrying to and from appointments and errands, we don’t have a lot of time to take care of our own mental and physical health and for many women, juggling, this adds another layer of stress. We see it in our health, women with increased heart attacks, diabetes, asthma, we’re up in the numbers, and this is no coincidence.
We have to really think through what the next level of challenges are for us. There just aren’t enough hours in the day so we do what we can. And, what is happening is that we do what we do what we can in spite of the fact that we’re not getting the needed kind of support from the government and society as a whole. The reality is that women and families are not getting the support that they need to thrive. We’ve spent the last decade talking a good game about family values but I haven’t seen much in my life that really shows us that we are a society that actually values families. (applause)
We have essentially ignored the plight of women and families. We’ve told them "you go figure it out". Figure out how you’re going to support a family on minimum wage and no benefits. You go figure out who is going to watch your children while you are at work without access to adequate, affordable childcare. You figure out how to keep your family healthy without access to quality health care, figure out how you are going to ensure that your children get the best education possible. You figure out how you are going to live without access to affordable housing. So, essentially, we’ve told women dream big, but after that, you are on your own. (applause)
I’m fortunate because, in addition to living in this community (gestures to table of mother and friends) one of the reasons we’ve stayed based in Chicago is not that we don’t like Washington, but that my support base is here and I can’t get through my day without it. So, I am blessed. I also know that I have a husband that actually loves me and supports me. Barack and I know that we have been very blessed in our lives and we don’t take anything for granted. I tease him all the time. You’ve all heard it. Today, he still didn’t put the butter up after he made his breakfast. I was like "you’re just asking for it, you know that I am giving a speech, why don’t you just put the butter up?" (laughter and applause) He said he was just giving me material. (laughter) I said, "yeah, right". He still doesn’t make the bed better than Sasha. (laughter) So I tease him.
But the reality is that my husband is a man who understands my unique struggle and the challenges facing women and families. It is not just because he lives with me, someone who is very opinionated and makes my point. I am not a martyr so he hears it. It is because he actually listens to me and has the utmost respect for my perspective and my life experience. It is also because he was raised in a household of strong women who he saw struggle and sacrifice for him to achieve his dreams. He saw his grandmother, the primary breadwinner in their household, work her entire life to support their whole family. He saw his mother, a very young, very single-parent trying to finish her education and raise two children across two continents. He sees his sister, a single-parent trying to eke out a life for herself and her daughter on a salary that is much too small. He sees it in the eyes of women he meets throughout the country, women who have lost children and husbands in the war, women who don’t have access to adequate healthcare, to affordable daycare or jobs that pay a living wage. Their stories keep him up at night. Their stories, our stories, are the foundation of what guides Barack throughout his life.
And, so we are here today, asking you to support us, to join us, to turn those worries into action to give women hope that there is someone like Barack who is not only decent, trustworthy, compassionate, smart and hard working, but he is also someone who recognizes that society, our community, is only as strong as our women and our families. (applause)
The trick is, we can’t do this without you. The difference now is that we have this window. That is the beauty of what is going on now. We aren’t going to be in this place in four years or eight years. We have the opportunity now. We can be a part of changing the way women are viewed in this country, and build a government that doesn’t just encourage women to dream big, but one that provides women and young girls with support and resources to pursue those dreams. I want that for my daughters. I want that for your daughters. I want that for this country. I know that we can do it, because I believe in Barack. I would not be here (laughter) Everyone knows (more laughter) Too many people know that I wouldn’t be here. But, I believe in his unique ability to bring people together. I see it every where I go. This is not an accident, ladies. It is not an accident.
But we need you to join us, because, you know what? Barack, as I tease, he’s a wonderful man, he’s a gifted man, but in the end, he is just a man. (laughter) He is an imperfect vessel and I love him dearly. (laughter and applause)
In all seriousness, he is going to get tired. He is tired now. He is going to make mistakes. He will stumble. Trust me, he will say things that you will not agree with all the time. He will not be able to move you to tears with every word that he says. You know? (laughter) But that is why this campaign is so important, because it is not all about Barack Obama. It is about all of us. It is about us turning these possibilities into action. I was just talking to Robin, here. Women, you know when something is right. You know it. This feels right and it is no accident. (applause and cheers)
So, we’re going to need you. I’m going to get tired. My hair is going to be messy. I am going to need every one in this room to call every friend, every neighbor, every woman who has felt disaffected, who hasn’t felt like there was somebody who would listen to them. I need you to get people to write $50 checks and $25 dollar checks, and to build a movement that is going to change this country. We have the chance today. (applause and cheers)
If we do that, ladies, if we grow this room from 1200 to 2400 (if Melia was here she could do the math a little better) and on and on, not only will we elect Barack Obama to be the next president of the United States, but we’ll do some real good in the process.
So, it is my distinct honor to introduce (and I don’t see him, so I hope he is here) my husband, the next president of the United States, Barack Obama.
Michelle gave this speech at a 'women for Obama' event in April, with support like this who can go wrong?
Michelle Obama:
This is just a wonderful event. The more I go out, the more I realize that there is something going on. This is, this is a movement! This is something bigger than Barack Obama or Michelle Obama or anyone else in this room. Don’t you just feel it? It is amazing. (applause)
So, I am honored to be here. Over the last few months I’ve had an opportunity to take a few trips around the country with Barack, you may have read some of them. Most recently, I’ve been doing trips on my own. We try to take the girls when we can. The one thing people are most curious about of me, particularly the women, they want to know "how are you doing?" I mean, "how are you doing?" I’m like, "I know, I know". They really want to know how am I balancing this stuff. Balancing being a mother, a professional, a campaigner, a wife, a woman, right? And they want to know how have things changed for us over the course of this journey.
What I tell them is that essentially, like many women, I’m doing a whole lot of juggling. Juggling! We all do it. I’ve found that this period has been both challenging and thrilling at the same time for me. I’ve had to cut back on my hours at work. (Smirks) It’s okay. (audience laughs) I love my job, but I can’t, I have to pick one. That has given me some more time. With Barack away even more, my focus has been trying to keep my kids sane through all this. That is first and foremost for us, making sure Melia and Sasha stay in their routine as much as possible, for as long as possible. Barack and I measure how well we are doing by saying, "how are the girls?" And they are just fine. They are going to ballet and gymnastics, they care about the next play date, the next pizza party, and then there is their school. I have to worry about, making sure we are on point academically, that we go to all the parent-teacher conferences, and Barack still goes to those. It is quite a scheduling feat, but we make it happen; presentations, school plays. You all know the drill.
I would not be able to do it without this particular table, right here. These are the women in my life, my mother, momma Kay, the girl’s godmothers, girlfriends of mine who help me shuttle and keep me held up. I want my mother and momma Kay to stand. You gotta stand up. (audience applauds) As you will find, they’re also a little mischievous too.
And, at the same time, I’m still trying to find time for myself, getting the hair done, (audience laughs) yeah, come on, let’s not pretend we don’t know that getting the hair and nails done is important, and getting a workout ladies. That’s one of the things I always talk about, gotta exercise, so I am still trying to do that. And to top it all off, I have the pleasure of doing it all in front of the watchful eyes of our friends in the back. (audience laughs, Michelle waves to media) What’s up people? (more laughter) Other than that, things haven’t changed much. (laughter)
But seriously, with the exception of the campaign trail and life in the public eye, I have to say that my life now is not really that much different from many of yours. I wake up every morning wondering how on earth I am going to pull off that next minor miracle to get through the day. I know that everybody in this room is going through this. That is the dilemma women face today. Every woman that I know, regardless of race, education, income, background, political affiliation, is struggling to keep her head above water. We try to convince ourselves that somehow doing it all is a badge of honor, but for many of us it is a necessity and we have to be very careful not to lose ourselves in the process. More often than not, we as women, are the primary caretakers in our households, scheduling babysitters, planning play dates, keeping up with regular doctor’s appointments; this was my week last week, supervising homework, handing our discipline. Usually we are the ones in charge of keeping the household together. I know you men, I know that you guys try to do your part, but the reality is that we’re doing it, right? (laughter and applause) Laundry, cleaning, cooking, shopping, home repairs. You know Barack has my back, he’s right there with me, feels my pain, and all that. (laughter)
And, for those of us who work outside of the home as well, we have the additional challenge of coordinating these things with our job responsibilities. How many of us have had to be the ones, when a child gets sick, who is the one who stays home? Or, when a toilet overflows? This was a couple of months ago. I was scrambling around to reschedule being at a 9 o’clock meeting and Barack, love him to death, put on his clothes and he left! (laughter)
To top it off we have the added social pressure of looking good, staying slim, don’t add pounds, gotta look good with wardrobe pulled together, and we have to be in good spirits, right? (laughter) Ready to be supportive of our significant others. I’m tired just thinking about it. (laughter) But, again, these are not challenges that are unique to me. I say this all the time and people think I’m being modest. But, the truth is that my experiences tell me that we as women are facing what I call "the next level of challenges", balancing work, family, ourselves differently than ever before. My mother says this all the time. She’s like "I don’t know how you do it" and she means it.
We have made great strides with regards to equality at all levels of society and because of the struggles so many have fought, many of you right in this room, I know that my daughters can dream big. They really can. There is no ceiling. They can envision themselves anyway that they want, surgeons, Supreme Court justices, basketball stars, they have images that I never had growing up. But I wonder, what is the unspoken cost that having it all takes on us. If we’re scurrying to and from appointments and errands, we don’t have a lot of time to take care of our own mental and physical health and for many women, juggling, this adds another layer of stress. We see it in our health, women with increased heart attacks, diabetes, asthma, we’re up in the numbers, and this is no coincidence.
We have to really think through what the next level of challenges are for us. There just aren’t enough hours in the day so we do what we can. And, what is happening is that we do what we do what we can in spite of the fact that we’re not getting the needed kind of support from the government and society as a whole. The reality is that women and families are not getting the support that they need to thrive. We’ve spent the last decade talking a good game about family values but I haven’t seen much in my life that really shows us that we are a society that actually values families. (applause)
We have essentially ignored the plight of women and families. We’ve told them "you go figure it out". Figure out how you’re going to support a family on minimum wage and no benefits. You go figure out who is going to watch your children while you are at work without access to adequate, affordable childcare. You figure out how to keep your family healthy without access to quality health care, figure out how you are going to ensure that your children get the best education possible. You figure out how you are going to live without access to affordable housing. So, essentially, we’ve told women dream big, but after that, you are on your own. (applause)
I’m fortunate because, in addition to living in this community (gestures to table of mother and friends) one of the reasons we’ve stayed based in Chicago is not that we don’t like Washington, but that my support base is here and I can’t get through my day without it. So, I am blessed. I also know that I have a husband that actually loves me and supports me. Barack and I know that we have been very blessed in our lives and we don’t take anything for granted. I tease him all the time. You’ve all heard it. Today, he still didn’t put the butter up after he made his breakfast. I was like "you’re just asking for it, you know that I am giving a speech, why don’t you just put the butter up?" (laughter and applause) He said he was just giving me material. (laughter) I said, "yeah, right". He still doesn’t make the bed better than Sasha. (laughter) So I tease him.
But the reality is that my husband is a man who understands my unique struggle and the challenges facing women and families. It is not just because he lives with me, someone who is very opinionated and makes my point. I am not a martyr so he hears it. It is because he actually listens to me and has the utmost respect for my perspective and my life experience. It is also because he was raised in a household of strong women who he saw struggle and sacrifice for him to achieve his dreams. He saw his grandmother, the primary breadwinner in their household, work her entire life to support their whole family. He saw his mother, a very young, very single-parent trying to finish her education and raise two children across two continents. He sees his sister, a single-parent trying to eke out a life for herself and her daughter on a salary that is much too small. He sees it in the eyes of women he meets throughout the country, women who have lost children and husbands in the war, women who don’t have access to adequate healthcare, to affordable daycare or jobs that pay a living wage. Their stories keep him up at night. Their stories, our stories, are the foundation of what guides Barack throughout his life.
And, so we are here today, asking you to support us, to join us, to turn those worries into action to give women hope that there is someone like Barack who is not only decent, trustworthy, compassionate, smart and hard working, but he is also someone who recognizes that society, our community, is only as strong as our women and our families. (applause)
The trick is, we can’t do this without you. The difference now is that we have this window. That is the beauty of what is going on now. We aren’t going to be in this place in four years or eight years. We have the opportunity now. We can be a part of changing the way women are viewed in this country, and build a government that doesn’t just encourage women to dream big, but one that provides women and young girls with support and resources to pursue those dreams. I want that for my daughters. I want that for your daughters. I want that for this country. I know that we can do it, because I believe in Barack. I would not be here (laughter) Everyone knows (more laughter) Too many people know that I wouldn’t be here. But, I believe in his unique ability to bring people together. I see it every where I go. This is not an accident, ladies. It is not an accident.
But we need you to join us, because, you know what? Barack, as I tease, he’s a wonderful man, he’s a gifted man, but in the end, he is just a man. (laughter) He is an imperfect vessel and I love him dearly. (laughter and applause)
In all seriousness, he is going to get tired. He is tired now. He is going to make mistakes. He will stumble. Trust me, he will say things that you will not agree with all the time. He will not be able to move you to tears with every word that he says. You know? (laughter) But that is why this campaign is so important, because it is not all about Barack Obama. It is about all of us. It is about us turning these possibilities into action. I was just talking to Robin, here. Women, you know when something is right. You know it. This feels right and it is no accident. (applause and cheers)
So, we’re going to need you. I’m going to get tired. My hair is going to be messy. I am going to need every one in this room to call every friend, every neighbor, every woman who has felt disaffected, who hasn’t felt like there was somebody who would listen to them. I need you to get people to write $50 checks and $25 dollar checks, and to build a movement that is going to change this country. We have the chance today. (applause and cheers)
If we do that, ladies, if we grow this room from 1200 to 2400 (if Melia was here she could do the math a little better) and on and on, not only will we elect Barack Obama to be the next president of the United States, but we’ll do some real good in the process.
So, it is my distinct honor to introduce (and I don’t see him, so I hope he is here) my husband, the next president of the United States, Barack Obama.
posted by Wasiwasi at 9:24 PM
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