Find 35 Minutes

You must. Because there is a speech out there worth listening to. Listen while you're cooking dinner or getting ready for work or download it to your ipod and listen to it on the train. Or read it.

Never have I heard such a soberly delivered speech incite me to action more strongly.

Yes. I'm talking about Obama's speech today on the topic of race -- but really on the topic of unity of this nation -- a consistent theme along his path to the presidency.

Like my objections to the blog mentioned in a previous post, he encourages us to divorce the idea that race is something that defines our differences:

"For the African-American community, that path means embracing the burdens of our past without becoming victims of our past . . . it also means binding our particular grievances - for better health care, and better schools, and better jobs - to the larger aspirations of all Americans . . ."

He's made the case (or the reminder, if you will) that "legalized discrimination" through generations of exclusion from property ownership, unions, police and fire departments and other means of amassing wealth has caused a divide between black America and the rest of America, and that a lack of other community bonds and services have exacerbated the problem.

He talks about deep-seated resentment in both the white and black communities. How both are destructive unless dealt with in an honest, progressive way.

And like he continues to run his campaign, he encourages all people to make small steps. You don't have to become a large scale community leader to make a difference. You don't have to donate the maximum to the campaign. You don't have to make politics your second job. You don't even have to write a blog post about it. You do what you can, because you can, and because there's only one place to start.

Even if you're not voting for Obama, please vote.