Dear President Obama

Dear President Obama,

As Cenk Uygur says, How'd That Bipartisanship Thing Work Out For You?

President Obama . . . or Barack, may I call you Barack? . . . let me tell you something: the people you’re trying to be friends with are the same type of people who fought civil rights and racial equality in the 60s. If they hadn’t been defeated, your daughters wouldn’t be able to go to school with white children or eat in any restaurant they wish. And the only way you’d be in the White House would be as a janitor.

Barack, you owe your success to your own intelligence and hard work, certainly, but you also owe something to the people who cleared the way for you, to the civil right workers who lost their lives, from Martin Luther King to those whose names we’ve forgotten. Those people believed in equality, in a just society, in a living wage, and in many other things that I know you believe in, too. The difference is, they were willing to fight for what they believed.

There’s a lot more I could say, but I’m going to keep this letter short. In 2008 we voted for audacity and change and got mendacity and status quo. Had we settled for that in the 60s, you wouldn’t be where you are today. You owe something to the people who made it possible for you to be in the White House, both the people who voted for you two years ago, and the people, many now deceased, who fought for what they believe in, and wouldn’t compromise. Think about that, would you?

Best wishes,
A Friend