My Letter to Barack Obama

Dear President-elect Barack Hussein Obama,

I sit here on the eve of your inauguration, and I ponder the possibilities of the future. These possibilities run through my mind daily. I am the mother of three, young, mixed race boys. For the first time since their birth, I see a future that I could previously, only hope for. My children are not a black and white mix, but an Asian and white mix. However, in the mind of a hateful, and bigoted society, they are no different than you. The only emotion that does not discriminate, is hate. You have shown this country that we can rise above it, and see the person, and not the color of his skin, the shape of his eyes, or the blood in his veins. For that, I thank you. I thank you through tears of pure joy.

President Obama, I have put my faith, and trust in your promise of hope, and change. I do, however, realize that you are only one man. You are one man who speaks, and acts on behalf of us all. That is a dubious task, and not one that I envy. How will you begin to speak for the voices that speak out against you? It is your duty, and your obligation to find a way to accomplish that. You owe it to our country, and to our future, to pull through and keep your promises. Millions of Americans adopted your mantra of “Yes we can”. So now, the time has come to remember that it was “We the people”, who gave you the opportunity to show us “Yes we can”.

We have held up our end of the deal, now it is your turn to hold up yours. I beg you to remember what you have promised. When we asked for change, we meant it. As a country, we have suffered greatly for the past eight years. We suffered at the hand of a man and an administration that forgot about “We the people”. You have given us our voices back. You may not always like what we have to say, but it is your duty to listen. You MUST remember, even those who spoke out against you. You MUST remember , even those who tried to destroy you. We are all Americans. We are now one unified voice, just as you told us we could be. So now, the question is, will you hear, and will you listen?

President Obama, remember our brave young men and women who have fought for a lie. They have given their lives, their hearts, and their free will to this country, in the name of a lie. I beg you to remember them, and to bring them home safely, and responsibly. I would also request that you remember all of the brave veterans who sit in their homes waiting for our government to step up and care for them, in the way that they did for their government. It has been a long wait for many of them. The time has come to put an end to their suffering, and show them that we care. They don’t need any more medals, parades, or ceremonies. They need health care. They need food, and shelter. They need support and counseling. WE owe it to them, and it is time for us to pay up. You can write the check, President Obama, and we will sign it.

Our children’s future has been mortgaged, all the while their education suffers. How can we begin to give them the tools to pay for our mistakes, if they are not educated on how it happened? It is crucial to the fabric of our society that we properly educate all of our children. Not just the wealthy and elite. We must educate the poor and the impoverished. They are the new foundation of our country, please do not weaken the structure by ignoring the need for education. Our educational system is in shambles, long neglected and left to die. For the sake of the stability of our nation, I ask you to rebuild our children’s future.

I have followed your campaign, and your rise to power. I have seen a man who was little known overcome racial barriers, social barriers, age barriers, and religious barriers. Your words have had a profound effect upon myself, and upon my family. I am humbled and honored to call you MY PRESIDENT!! My eyes well up with tears, just seeing those words. You are our hope. You are our change. So, please do not forget about why you are, where you are. Please don’t take for granted the power you have been given. Please remember my sons, and the sons and daughters of this nation. When you are faced with the inevitable corruption and compromise of everything that you have promised, I want you to remember your own words. Then I want you to remember the faces of the children who chanted them with you. Remember, “Yes WE can”.

Sincerely,
Just one voice, of many
Roberta Heart

About Roberta

Roberta is the mother of three young sons rapidly approaching adolescence. She is a 34 year old small business owner and Freelance Writer residing in Western PA. Roberta's most recent articles and essays have been published in Lilipoh Magazine, Cynics Online, WE Women Magazine, Power Women Magazine and Healthy Place. She has lived all her life in a middle class, real world, suburban setting, and uses her skills as a communicator and writer to convey a message, purely in the hopes that someone, anyone is listening.