Take a moment...regardless of your politics

In 1776, a group of uncommon men gathered together to create a new nation; a nation of new ideals and new hope. They forged a document which declared themselves a democracy where every man could create his own opportunity.

In that document, they proclaimed:
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness."

The trouble was, those same men making such profound and inflammatory claims, were at the same time, holding slaves themselves. While they may have believed all men should be created equal, they did not have the means or the fortitude to make it so.

187 years later, in 1963, after years of slavery and segregation and their basic rights as citizens were being denied, a Baptist minister from Georgia took that American document in his hand and marched on Washington. Standing on the steps of the Lincoln memorial, he proclaimed to the nation:

"I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."

I have 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....

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."

With those words echoing in his heart and mind, a man of humble beginnings- raised by a single mother, abandoned by his African father, grew to become a professor of Constitutional law and a US Senator; tonight, we have elected him our 44th President.

No longer will our children see only white faces in their history books under the listing American President. No longer will our children of color think there are limits to what they can do or become.

It is finally true in this country that all men in this nation are created equal.

So tonight, regardless of your politics, take a moment.

Tonight is a great night.

Tonight we are living history.