Ashley Reed Ms. Kimberly Arnold
1/10/09 B.P.W.
Oratorical Contest
Question: How is the agenda of today’s leaders similar to those of the leaders of our past?
The agenda of today’s leaders is similar to those of the leaders of our past. This is especially true for the two famous leaders Barack Hussein Obama and Martin Luther King Jr.
Barack and Martin both promoted change. They both promoted change the same way too, through speeches and non-violent ways. Also, they both had their own famous speeches. Mr. King had his “I Have a Dream” while Barack said, “Yes We Can”. Both of these were powerful speakers, and their speeches were equally powerful. In the present people can compare and relate these two people to each other mainly because of their speeches.
But there are differences between them too. Barack Obama promoted change because he was running for President and the word “change” was his campaign slogan. He wanted change in the country and for the people. The type of change he wanted was in the way the government is being run. There are many aspects of this country that he wanted to be changed, but his main priorities were the economy, environment, and national security due to the problems arising in our country that have to deal with these three things.
On the other hand, Martin Luther King promoted change because during the time and events in his life, our country, especially the South, was very racist and segregated. He wanted to change this and in the words from his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, he had a dream that, “one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.” In other words he wanted everyone to be treated equally and not be treated unfair because of the color of their skin.
One very important similarity between these two men is that both of their hopes and dreams are coming true. Martin’s dreams are now coming...