YES, THEY CAN! - HOPE FOR THE NEXT GENERATION

Bronx students discuss Obama's race speech

From: BarackObamadotcom


Hi guys,
I came across this video and I was impressed by these students’ intense interest and views about politics in light of the Obama/Clinton race. What inspired me more was the hope and belief in the indomitable spirit of mankind and the American dream for all of its citizens.

This election has given me hope that King’s 40 year old prophetic dream that America will judge its citizens by their character and not their race or gender is about to be realized. Metaphysically 40 signifies completion. Remarkably, it is significant in Jewish, Christian, Islamic, and other Middle Eastern traditions; it can also represent a rough calculation, a huge sum of units, or simply put a lot of something:

-"Forty days and forty nights" describes the period for which rain fell during Noah's flood
-"Forty days" was the length of the period that the twelve spies explored the Promised Land
-"Forty years" was the length of Israel's wandering in the wilderness. This period of years represents a generation, that is, the time it takes for a new generation to arise.
-Moses' life is divided into three 40-year segments, separated by his fleeing from Egypt, and his return to lead the people out.
-Several Israelite leaders and kings are said to have ruled for "forty years", that is, a generation. (Examples: Eli, Saul, David, Solomon.)
-According to the Midrash, Moses spent three consecutive periods of "forty days and forty nights" on Mount Sinai.
-Rabbi Akiva, the greatest expositor of the Oral Torah, only began learning how to read Hebrew when he was 40 years old
-"Forty days and forty nights" was the period Jesus spent fasting in the wilderness, after which he was tempted by Satan.
-Forty days was the period from Jesus' resurrection till his ascension into heaven.
-In modern Christian practice, Lent consists of the 40 days preceding Easter. -The dead are usually mourned for forty days in Muslim cultures
-Muhammad is said to be forty years old when he first received the revelation delivered by an angel.
-In the Yazidi faith, The Chermera temple (meaning “40 Men” in the Yazidi dialect) is so old that no one remembers how it came to have that name but it is believed to derive from the burial of 40 men on the mountaintop site.
-In Hinduism, some popular religious prayers consist of forty shlokas or dohas (couplets, stanzas).

Finally after 40 years, or essentially a generation later, Dr. King’s dream is being realized. It seems pretty clear that America will have a female or an African American as president. Let us learn from this historical moment the importance of instilling in the next generation the importance of not only the American dream, but their individual dreams. Although it may take time for us to realize our dreams, we must never give up on a heartfelt dream that benefits mankind. Defeat is not an option- when we persist through adversity, we will be Winners at life!

Stay Blessed!
Joyce