Celebrities say “Yes We Can” to Obama, I have doubts

Will.i.am from the band Black Eyed Peas was inspired to write and produce the song “Yes We Can” after listening to a 2008 Presidential campaign speech given by Barack Obama in New Hampshire.

Here he explains his thought process and how the song came about.

After reading him explain how he was inspired, I was intrigued to see what was his inspiration. If you haven’t heard the speech, you can watch it here.

The “Yes We Can” part of the speech starts around the 10:30 mark.

“It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the
destiny of a nation.”

“Yes We Can.”

“It was whispered by slaves and abolitionists as they blazed a trail
toward freedom through the darkest of nights.”

“Yes We Can.”

“It was sung by immigrants as they struck out from distant shores and
pioneers who pushed westward against an unforgiving wilderness.”

“Yes We Can.”

“It was the call of workers who organized; women who reached for the
ballot; a President who chose the moon as our new frontier; and a King who took us to the mountaintop and pointed the way to the Promised Land.”

“Yes we can to justice and equality. Yes we can to opportunity and
prosperity. Yes we can heal this nation. Yes we can repair this
world. Yes we can.”

As I listened, I couldn’t help but think of another speech with a similar repetitive line. Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech used the same format of example and repeated theme.

“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 one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.”

“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.”

“I have a dream today.”

“I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.”

“I have a dream today.”

After going back and reading Dr. Kings speech and comparing it to Obama’s “Yes We Can” speech one thing stood out to me. The “I Have A Dream” speech had a purpose, a specific calling that one day people would be treated equally not because of race or skin color, but because of humanity.

Obama’s speech was passionate and well delivered, but everything Obama mentioned was in the past. There was no clear purpose to what Obama’s change was. Change for the sake of change does nothing. Saying we need change, but not explaining what that change should be is empty.

I decided to watch the Will.i.am “Yes We Can” video to see if I could get some more specifics from it.

The video speaks to “justice”, “equality”, “opportunity”, and “prosperity”. Sign me up. I don’t think there is anyone in this great nation that does not want these.

Obama is inspirational. He is a tremendous speaker. Inspiration and amazing speeches can bring about change. But if the change it inspires brings the wrong change where does that put us.

The one take away from this video and this speech was the line “there has never been anything false about hope”. Again, I agree 100%. Hope is a powerful thing and is necessary to keep this country the greatest country in the world. But hope is nothing without a plan. A plan only brings about change with execution. And an executed plan that brings change is only beneficial when that change produces positive results.

If Obama can inspire so many people to change, he must have introduced amazing changes for the good of this country in his personal and short political live.

One change he voted against was the Illinois’ Born Alive Infant Protection Act that which would have protected babies that survived late-term abortions. These babies that were living outside the womb on their own would have been saved under this new act. Obama felt “No We Can’t” give medical attention to these innocent babies that were living and breathing human beings because this would “create one more burden on a woman and I can’t support that.”

One change Obama has made recently was his support of his pastor Rev. Wright. This change came after knowing Rev. Wright and attending his church for 17 years. Change is often made because it is required to further your political career.

In the world of politics, change is made by voting for or against legislation. A NY Times article speaks to Obama’s inability to make change by calling attention to his voting record.

I find it hard to believe that an agent of change, voted “present” (equivalent to “I’m not sure how I feel about an issue”) 130 times as a state Senator. Not much change happening there.

I am convinced that Will.i.am and the other 36 celebrities that appear in the “Yes We Can” video believe that Obama stands for change, and he does.

My concern is not knowing what that change entails because of his limited resume of change. His previous judgment that he has shown causes me concern for the change he may try to impose if he truly is an agent of change that he says he is and that the celebrities believe he can be.

Celebrities that appear in the video include:
adam rodriguez, alfonso ribeiro, amaury nolasco, amber valletta, auden mccaw, anson mount, austin nichols, aisha tyler, bryan greenberg, cliff collins, common, derek watkins, ed kowalczyk, enrique murciano, eric balfour, eric olsen, esthero, fred goldring, harold perrineau, herbie hancock, hill harper, john legend, john schaech, kareem abdul jabbar, kate walsh, kelly hu, maya rubin, nick cannon, nicole scherzinger, sam page, sarah wright, scarlett johansson, shoshannah stern, taryn manning, tatyana ali, tracee ellis ross, will.i.am

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