The line for which this speech will be remembered

[Exilednight]

I'm here because of Ashley

I here by anoint this the Ashley speech!!

By itself, that single moment of recognition between that young white girl and that old black man is not enough. It is not enough to give health care to the sick, or jobs to the jobless, or education to our children.

But it is where we start.

It's time to start.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. How did you do the graphics? n/t

[Exilednight]

2. I'm not sure. It's eye catching though.

[burythehatchet]

5. this code

div class="excerpt"]Text

[chknltl]

3. I was just thinkin of mustard and relish sandwiches and of course

Ashley.

[Johnny__Motown]

4. He has been telling the Ashley story for months

[Exilednight]

6. But many haven't heard it until today.

[superkia]

12. Thats the first time I heard that "Ashley speech", but it sent me...

right back to my childhood eating a ketchup or mayonnaise sandwich and smiling with every bite! My 3 brothers and I, never complained because we knew that our mother was giving all.

[Kittycat]

9. Doesn't matter. It speaks to the core of what is happening wrong in America

And what we must work to fix.

[GodlessBiker]

7. Who's Ashley (I haven't seen the speech yet)?

[here_is_to_hope]

8. I am asking too...??? n/t

[Exilednight]

10. Meet Ashley

There is a young, twenty-three year old white woman named Ashley Baia who organized for our campaign in Florence, South Carolina. She had been working to organize a mostly African-American community since the beginning of this campaign, and one day she was at a roundtable discussion where everyone went around telling their story and why they were there.

And Ashley said that when she was nine years old, her mother got cancer. And because she had to miss days of work, she was let go and lost her health care. They had to file for bankruptcy, and that’s when Ashley decided that she had to do something to help her mom.

She knew that food was one of their most expensive costs, and so Ashley convinced her mother that what she really liked and really wanted to eat more than anything else was mustard and relish sandwiches. Because that was the cheapest way to eat.

She did this for a year until her mom got better, and she told everyone at the roundtable that the reason she joined our campaign was so that she could help the millions of other children in the country who want and need to help their parents too.

Now Ashley might have made a different choice. Perhaps somebody told her along the way that the source of her mother’s problems were blacks who were on welfare and too lazy to work, or Hispanics who were coming into the country illegally. But she didn’t. She sought out allies in her fight against injustice.

Anyway, Ashley finishes her story and then goes around the room and asks everyone else why they’re supporting the campaign. They all have different stories and reasons. Many bring up a specific issue. And finally they come to this elderly black man who’s been sitting there quietly the entire time. And Ashley asks him why he’s there. And he does not bring up a specific issue. He does not say health care or the economy. He does not say education or the war. He does not say that he was there because of Barack Obama. He simply says to everyone in the room, “I am here because of Ashley.”

“I’m here because of Ashley.” By itself, that single moment of recognition between that young white girl and that old black man is not enough. It is not enough to give health care to the sick, or jobs to the jobless, or education to our children.

[here_is_to_hope]

11. *getting tissues*....thanx...

We grew up poor in New Bern, North Carolina...and we ate butter and sugar sandwiches often, too often but it was something.
I can relate.
I can definitely relate.

*more tissues*

[GodlessBiker]

16. Very nice. Thanks.

[tishaLA]

14. From the speech:

There is a young, twenty-three year old white woman named Ashley Baia who organized for our campaign in Florence, South Carolina. She had been working to organize a mostly African-American community since the beginning of this campaign, and one day she was at a roundtable discussion where everyone went around telling their story and why they were there.

And Ashley said that when she was nine years old, her mother got cancer. And because she had to miss days of work, she was let go and lost her health care. They had to file for bankruptcy, and that's when Ashley decided that she had to do something to help her mom.

She knew that food was one of their most expensive costs, and so Ashley convinced her mother that what she really liked and really wanted to eat more than anything else was mustard and relish sandwiches. Because that was the cheapest way to eat.

She did this for a year until her mom got better, and she told everyone at the roundtable that the reason she joined our campaign was so that she could help the millions of other children in the country who want and need to help their parents too.

Now Ashley might have made a different choice. Perhaps somebody told her along the way that the source of her mother's problems were blacks who were on welfare and too lazy to work, or Hispanics who were coming into the country illegally. But she didn't. She sought out allies in her fight against injustice.

Anyway, Ashley finishes her story and then goes around the room and asks everyone else why they're supporting the campaign. They all have different stories and reasons. Many bring up a specific issue. And finally they come to this elderly black man who's been sitting there quietly the entire time. And Ashley asks him why he's there. And he does not bring up a specific issue. He does not say health care or the economy. He does not say education or the war. He does not say that he was there because of Barack Obama. He simply says to everyone in the room, "I am here because of Ashley."

[InsultComicDog]

13. I couldn't help but think of Nixon's 'Checkers' speech

And I'm sure that comes out the wrong way when I say it.

But that speech was probably Nixon's finest moment politically. He dug himself out of major poo poo with that one.

[Exilednight]

15. I like your pic. "Like W, only older" ROFLMAO