Last year, I made the video below to thank President Obama for allowing this blogger to be who he is and not an African American stereotype. This one:
The message of one year ago still applies today.
It's no accident that Barack Obama comes from my generation of not just black men, but Asian, Latino, and other minorities of color both male and female. All of us, it's not too much of a stretch to say, don't reflect the historic stereotypes American society stamped on those before us, and tries to stick on some of those with us today.
I never grew up seeing anyone Asian as "The model minority" or anyone Latino from the negative stereotypes placed on them. At Skyline High School (where the class of 80 just had a rocking 30th reunion), I knew guys who were stoners, screw-ups, smart folks, and cheerleaders, and all of them were Asian, Latino, and Black.
I never grew up seeing anyone that way.
At my 30th Skyline High School Reunion I looked out and saw my friends and classmates of all different shapes, sizes, and colors intermingling and having a massively great time and thought to myself, "That's my generation. What a cool group of people!"
My generation is Barack Obama's generation: "The Kennedy Generation."
No offense to Tom Hanks, who graduated from Skyline High School in Oakland in 1974 and talks about those who fought in World War II as "The Greatest Generation," but I think our generation's not too far behind that one in greatness. We're the first to break away from racial stereotypes, not just of others, but of ourselves, and realize the full range of possibilities of The American Dream.
The fact that Barack Obama - the 44th President of The United States, and of the class of '79, and America's first black president - is from my generation is no accident. My generation consists of those who are on the cusp of the Bay Boom, born in 1960 and up in America.
I suppose, since John F. Kennedy was president when we were born, you could call us "The Kennedy Generation."
If you think about it, "The Kennedy Generation" reflects the sweeping hopes and dreams of President Kennedy himself: to reach for the moon and improve the quality of life for everyone on Earth. We learned how to protest from the early Baby Boomers, but altered our approach with a desire to cause change from within the system itself.
Little, by little, we gained power and influence, until one of us was ready to be President and we elected him.
Barack Obama reflects the best of my generation: we broke the mold and made America an even greater nation.
Happy Birthday, Mr. President.
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