2016 Democratic National Convention Speech Quotes
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Source: 2016 Democratic National Convention Speech
Speaker: Michelle Obama
"I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves, and I watch my daughters—two beautiful, intelligent, Black young women—playing with their dogs on the White House lawn."
That is the story of this country, the story that has brought me to this stage tonight, the story of generations of people who felt the lash of bondage, the shame of servitude, the sting of segregation, but who kept on striving and hoping and doing what needed to be done so that today, I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves—and I watch my daughters—two beautiful, intelligent, Black young women—playing with their dogs on the White House lawn. And because of Hillary Clinton, my daughters—and all our sons and daughters—now take for granted that a woman can be President of the United States.
Context
This line was spoken by Michelle Obama in her Democratic National Convention speech (July 25, 2016).
Though First Lady Michelle Obama had used variations on this line in speeches before, this is the one that's probably the best known. Mrs. Obama dropped this bit of wisdom toward the end of her Democratic National Convention speech in 2016 and it pretty much brought the house down and caused Shmoop to use up all of our extra tissues. Seriously, all the feels.
It's a pretty incredible line, because here you have the First Lady of the United States reminding us that she's a direct descendant of slaves. This is the very same group of people who were systematically kidnapped, brutalized, and forced into labor—including building the very home she was living in.
So just to recap: slavery was so very messed up and any country where a Black woman can wake up in the most iconic house in our country, built by slaves, is maybe kind of great already. Maybe, just maybe.
Where you've heard it
You probably heard this one all over the news in mid-2016 because it was all the rage. People were either high-fiving for Michelle Obama or wondering whether or not the White House was actually built by slaves. Facepalm, people. Read a history book.
Bill O'Reilly caught some flak for mentioning that at least the slaves who built the White House were "well-fed and had decent lodgings." (Historians don't entirely agree with that assessment.) Also, he pointed out that slaves weren't the only ones who built the White House—free Blacks, whites, and immigrants also contributed. These guys, presumably, got paid and then got to go home at the end of the day and didn't have to worry about anyone selling them to a new master in Georgia. But hey, yeah, totally. Not all of the people working on the White House were slaves. Thank goodness Bill is there to set the record straight.
Pretentious Factor
If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.
Hmmm...this one isn't exactly pretentious in and of itself, but you've gotta have some pretty specific circumstances to say it. Are you a descendant of slaves? Do you live in a house built by slaves? Is it an iconic house that you kind of had no choice but to live in? Yeah, this quote only really works for Michelle Obama, but we love it for her. She should say it at every dinner party until the end of time.