FIVE DAYS When the world watched Denver

A Metropolitan Special Report

A Boulder resident, who asked to be identified as Forrest, stands in silent protest after the police blockaded the marchers using pepper
spray and rubber bullets to subdue the crowd. Photo by Stephen Swofford, sswoffo1@mscd.edu

History made a mile high About this

special report

F
For five days, reporters,
or 120 hours, Denver was the center of the universe. That’s photographers and editors of
7,200 minutes; 432,000 seconds. In comparison to other The Metropolitan staff fanned
across Denver to report on
events, that isn’t a long time. But those pivotal moments will the Democratic National
be spoken and read about forever. Convention. They were at Civic
Center Park, the 16th Street
It was during those five days history was made. And the course of Mall, the Pepsi Center and, of
the United States would change, undeniably, forever. It was the week course, Invesco Field at Mile
High to be your witness to this
the Democratic Party would nominate the junior senator from Illi- historic event. The following
nois, Barack Obama, a man of Kenyan and Kansas descent, to be its is a collection of interviews,
observations and experiences
presidential nominee. It would be the first time, in the history of this during the week of the DNC.
country, a black man would be a major party’s candidate.
FOR MORE NEWS, PHOTOS
This is the story of how one city, and one college campus — in the AND VIDEOS FROM THE DNC
middle of it all — witnessed history. GO TO www.metrostudentmedia.
blogspot.com
C2 • FIVE DAYS • SEPTEMBER 4, 2008 • THE METROPOLITAN

Sunday

A protester throws a garbage can onto the sidewalk at the16th Street Mall during “Reclaim the Streets” on Aug. 24, in Denver. About 37 different
groups came together to march through the streets without a permit. Photo by Dawn Madura, dmadura@mscd.edu

Protesters prelude historic week

We are
A
s the Democratic National Con-
vention Committee put finish-
taking ing touches on the Pepsi Center,
over the more than 5,000 delegates, a cavalcade
of media and thousands of tourists made
chair, and I will be damned if I’m going
to see any other troops come back in this
chair.
“I gave three-quarters of my body
in Vietnam. Today, we’ll march today
will continue,” she said. “The war in Iraq,
the war against poor people. We need to
force these politicians to make changes.
This day will help create that change.”
Along the southbound lanes of Speer,
Police made the decision on-site to
allow the march to continue to the Pepsi
Center as long as the group remained
peaceful.

streets, their way into the city. And while the con-
sitting
in the
vention had yet to officially start, the dem-
onstrators marching the streets made it
clear — the DNC had begun.
name of
Protesters take
freedom. first steps
We will
not be
A fter months of meetings with the
city, various protest organizations
formed two groups: The Recreate ’68 Al-
silenced. liance and Tent State. The alliances had
Civic Center Park and the City of Cuer-
We will navaca Park as their respective parks for
not be demonstrations. While Tent State pre-
pared for a week of classes and concerts,
silenced. R-’68 began the week with a march to the
We will gates of the Pepsi Center.
On the west steps of the Capitol build-
not be ing, R-’68 began its march with a rally.
silenced. Among the speakers were former CU pro-
fessor Ward Churchill and vocal war pro-
testers Cindy Sheehan and Ron Kovic.
— Ron Kovic, Sheehan’s son was killed in 2004
while serving in Iraq. She has been pro-
author testing the war ever since.
“Born on the Kovic, author of “Born on the Fourth
Fourth of of July,” told the crowd assembled, “This
July” is my 40th year in this chair. I was in the
Vietnam War — that is why I am in this
peacefully. The whole world is watching.
The whole world is watching you,” Kovic
said.
The marches begin
T he first march from Civic Center to
the Pepsi Center rounded onto Speer
Boulevard from Colfax Avenue at about
11 a.m.
Protesters wearing Zapatista-esque
bandanas covering their nose and mouth
chanted against fascism and the war in
Iraq.
“We are going to the Pepsi Center, and
we’re going to make our demands heard,”
someone belted on a megaphone. R-’68
had been told by the city its march would
end at Market Street, but the organization
promised to continue all the way to the
heart of the convention at the Pepsi Cen-
ter, even if it meant they’d be arrested.
Leilani Dowell, 30, of New York City,
and a member of Fight Imperialism Stand
Together, said these kinds of protests were
necessary to remind the world that while
politicians can make the decision to go to
war or retreat, they won’t until the people
demand it of them.
“No matter who gets elected, all wars
police in riot gear stood to keep the pro- Calm before the storm
testers on the street. When the demon-
stration reached Lawrence Street, a heli-
copter flew over and several protesters fell
W hile the protesters remained
peaceful in the physical sense,
their chants were filled with rage: “1-2-3-
to the ground. This was to represent the 4, we don’t want your fucking war,” the
thousands who have died in military ser-
vice. It was an awe-inspiring sight.
crowd roared.
At 12:51 p.m., R-’68 asked the Den-
The march reached Speer Boulevard
and Auraria Parkway at 12:21 p.m. The
convention’s security checkpoints were
ver Police if they could march back to the
Capitol building through Auraria. The
request was denied, and the group was
not yet in place for the convention, and
the protest was allowed to continue to the
ordered to disperse or be arrested. While
there was some confusion, mostly due
nearest gate at the Pepsi Center. to a lack of communication, the group
A college Democrat, Rachel Soyle, of
Ohio, said she decided to see the march at
broke up soon enough.
As the sun set on the eve of the con-
the spur of the moment. “I love the pas- vention, little else happened. Tent State
sion,” she said.
Upon reaching the gates of the Pepsi
sponsored a music festival at the 16th
Street Mall. The free mall shuttle was
Center, R-’68 leaders asked protesters to temporarily shut down when Unconven-
sit with them.
“We are taking over the streets,” Kov-
tional Denver — perhaps the most radical
of any protest group — marched up the
ic said. “We are taking over the streets, sit- mall, occasionally deviating on to side
ting in the name of freedom. We will not streets causing minimal traffic jams.
be silenced. We will not be silenced. We
will not be silenced. (By Nic Garcia, ngarci20@mscd.edu) Dan
“They told us we could not march to Williams contributed to this report.
the Pepsi Center, but we did. We are send-
ing a message to the convention and to
the entire country.”
 THE METROPOLITAN • SEPTERMBER 4, 2008 • FIVE DAYS • C3

S
Monday
pectators awoke wondering, “was
that it?” The demonstrations from
the day prior had left more to be
desired by any news junkie or violent an-
archist.
The throngs of protesters promised to
Denver had not arrived on time, if at all.
At best, the most Denver had seen on the
eve of the convention was a meager 500.
Glenn Spagnuolo, one of the master-
minds behind Recreate ’68, had said he
was happy with the Sunday march. His
goal for the week is to minimize violence
and arrests, he said. “A lot of people are
hoping for violence. They’re going to be
disappointed,” he warned.
The first surprise of the day wasn’t on
anyone’s schedule. The Democratic Par-
ty’s presumptive nominee for vice presi-
dent, Sen. Joe Biden, landed in downtown
Denver at a hot dog stand outside of the
Tabor Center.
Meanwhile, a march by supporters
of Leonard Peltier and Mumia Abu-Ja-
mal made its way from Civic Center Park
to the Araj Federal Courthouse. Peltier
and Abu-Jamal are two prisoners turned
cultural icons regarding unfair imprison-
ment.
A dozen protesters wearing orange
jumpsuits and hoods, similar to those
worn by the prisoners at Guantanamo
Bay, led hundreds of others down the
16th Street Mall.

Beast and the Beauty

S en. Ted Kennedy — in his second pub-
lic appearance since being diagnosed
with a brain tumor — addressed the con-
vention, shocking all in attendance.
Rumors of a possible Kennedy ad-
dress had been swirling all day since he
touched down in Denver, but went un- A woman, who asked only to be identified as “Sunshine,” is arrested August 25, 2008. She was allegedly
confirmed until he stepped on stage. searched by Denver Police officers unlawfully in front of the convention center. Denver Police said the girl
The senator pledged that the time had
was detained because she failed to provide proper identification. Photo by Dana Pennington, dpennin3@mscd.edu
come for all Americans to have health
care, and under the leadership of Sen.

First impressions, old friends

Barack Obama, the dream could finally
be a reality.
“This is the cause of my life,” Ken-
nedy said. “New hope that we will break
the old gridlock and guarantee that every
American — north, south, east and west,
young, old — will have decent health care
as a fundamental right and not a privi-
lege.”
Michelle Obama, wife of Barack
Obama, also spoke Monday night. She
stumbled at first during her speech, look-
ing slightly uncomfortable speaking in
front of her largest audience yet on the
campaign trail. But midway through,
she found a rhythmic pace and began to
speak and look like a very strong potential
first lady.
Michelle Obama had two goals for her
speech: the first to clear up any questions
about her patriotism that had been in ques-
tion by the GOP; the second to cast her hus-
band and family as All-Americans.
“Barack doesn’t care where you’re
from, or what your background is, or what
party — if any — you belong to. That’s
not how he sees the world,” she said. “He
knows that thread that connects us — our
belief in America’s promise, our commit-
ment to our children’s future — is strong
enough to hold us together as one nation
even when we disagree.”
While the Pepsi Center was full of
pomp and circumstance, Civic Center Park
was filling up with protesters and tear gas.
Clouded intentions
A ccording to multiple sources, Uncon-
ventional Denver was planning an-
other unpermitted march through down-
town. One source told The Metropolitan
in addition to marching, vandalism and
aggressive rioting would occur at fund-
raisers and at business offices. And at ap-
proximately 6:30 p.m., the police blocked
the route and pepper-sprayed protesters.
Amanda Hubbard was one of them.
She was standing on Bannock Street pre-
paring to march. “Everyone had his or
her own reason for being there. Once I got
sprayed, I was blind,” she said. “I grabbed
the arm of the first person next to me and
I told her not to let go.”
Mass panic spread through the park.
That’s when other protesters made a mad
dash toward 15th Street. However, when
the group of 300 reached Court Place,
they were surrounded at each intersec-
tion by police.
A standoff between the protesters and
cops lasted about an hour. Hundreds of
onlookers surrounded the perimeter to
take photos and gawk. Other protesters,
who were not being detained, mocked the
police standing guard.
“Speech is free! Let them be!” the
crowd chanted. Anxious protesters not
corralled were wearing bandanas over
their noses. The air was filled with a mix-
ture of sweat and apple vinegar. Apple
vinegar helps decrease the pain associated
with tear gas.
As the minutes ticked by, more protest-
ers arrived at the scene. So did more cops.
“Oh my god, they have Pixie, Dustin!”
Shanice Sims, 19, told a friend over the
phone. She turned to the reporter next
to her. “In America, I thought we had
the freedom to assemble. But I guess not.
These faggot pigs.” Sims works for the
city and county of Denver. Sims said she
and her friends were out in Civic Center,
but when the tear gas was used, the three
were separated. She could have been in-
side the perimeter had she been a minute
earlier to cross Colfax. “We were on the
west side of the park. I thought we had
the First Amendment,” she said over and
over. “I never thought the cops would ar-
rest peaceful protesters. I think this is cor-
rupt. Uncalled for.”
Smoke clears
B y 9 p.m., the police had let most of
the protesters go. However, 91 peo-
ple were arrested on multiple charges. A
police spokeswoman did not have an im- I grabbed
mediate comment when asked about the
police using pepper spray on protesters in
the arm
Civic Center — the apparent reason for
the abrupt march into downtown. “We
of the
were just responding to the crowd’s ac- first
tions,” she said.
R-’68’s Spagnuolo was furious. “This person
is evidence we live in a fascist state,” he
said. Spagnuolo was not one of the pro- next to
testers in the perimeter. “The cops started
spraying tear gas, then they boxed them
me and I
in like a bunch of animals. This is total
bullshit.”
told her
Two protesters told The Metropolitan not to
a second protest had been planned for the
evening at 16th and Market, the intersec- let go.
tion between downtown and LoDo, Den-
ver’s night-life district. When staff mem-
— Amanda
bers reached the intersection, dozens of
cops had already reached the space. Sev-
Hubbard,
eral people, who would be protesters, were protester
seen doing an about face upon reaching
the “second spot.”
(By Nic Garcia, ngarci20@mscd.edu) An-
drew Flohr-Spence, David Pollan and Geoff
Wollerman contributed to this report.
C6 • FIVE DAYS • SEPTEMBER 4, 2008 • THE METROPOLITAN
Tuesday
Iraq war veteran Kris Goldsmith takes aim as part of a demonstration by members of Iraq Veterans Against the Way Aug. 26. The purpose of the
performance was to illustrate to ordinary citizens what a typical day in Iraq might look like. Photo by Adriana Carlson, acaris15@mscd.edu
Few protests, a party comes together
Whether The heated clash between demonstra-
tors and police cooled during the night,
you voted but protests were becoming an all-to-
familiar sight throughout the city, with
for me, or Recreate-’68 and CODEPINK gearing up
again that morning in Civic Center Park.
voted for
Opposing points of
Barack, view
the time Yet, Christian groups armed with
conflicting viewpoints and ideologies also
is now to had converged in the area and verbally
clashed with the protesters at R-’68’s
unite as base of operations.
“God Hates Fags,” read a banner
a single displayed by an Evangelical group from
party Westboro, Kan., and tensions between the
demonstrators reached their zenith when
with a R-’68 member Carlos Garcia grabbed a
sign from one of the Evangelicals. The
single police promptly stepped in, arresting Gar-
cia. In the first instance of possible police
purpose. brutality, a video by the Rocky Mountain
News shows an officer pushing a mem-
ber of CODEPINK, Alicia Forrest, to the
— Sen.
ground and later literally snatching her
Hillary away from the media and arresting her.
Clinton While no pepper spray or tear gas was
released, the public was weighing in on
the ever-increasing presence of police.
“The police have been out of control
all week,” said bystander Lou Brown, of
Oakland, Calif.
Following the arrests and in the wake
of the prior evening’s events, R-’68 leader
Glenn Spagnuolo voiced his dismissal of
any cooperation with authorities for the
duration of the convention, saying, “all
bets are off.”
“We will no longer be negotiating
with police whatsoever,” he said. “Last
night, we negotiated with the police and
were told to trust them.”
Apparently, any and all trust had dis-
sipated. However, the energy from the
demonstrators had not abated nor had
their creativity. And around noon at Civic
Center Park, The Backbone Campaign, a
group urging a more progressive stance
on politics, launched its own parade com-
plete with elaborate handcrafted puppets
and displays.
“I’ve never seen Denver look like this
at all. It’s almost like a big party,” Metro
student Chris Sanders said, as he helped
fellow Metro student Matt Struck carry a
giant puppet twice their height.
In yet another display across down-
town, members of the Iraq Veterans
Against the War simulated an Iraqi riot in
front of MSNBC’s makeshift studio near
Union Station.
Veterans used their hands as weapons
to subdue “civilian rioters” in white T-shirts
in an effort to show observers what Ameri-
can soldiers in Iraq deal with every day.
As the afternoon progressed, most of
the protesters around the city quieted.
Middle class takes
center stage
Meanwhile at the Pepsi Center, the
Democrats were ready for their voice to
be heard.
“Barack Obama is running to re-
store that fair shot for every American,”
Virginia Gov. Mark Warner said. While
highlighting his own accomplishments,
Warner gained applause with his vision
of Obama as the candidate to take the
country into the next century and also
hushed the crowd with his push for set-
ting aside bipartisan politics.
However, it was Sen. Hillary Clinton,
the former thorn in Obama’s side, who
those in attendance waited for to encap-
sulate the message of unity and the future
of the Democratic Party.
Clinton reminded the crowd of Amer-
ica’s prosperity during her husband’s
years in the White House. But in her
speech Tuesday — as opposed to every
other stump speech — there was a differ-
ent ending: this one with Obama in the
White House.
“As I recall, President Clinton and
the Democrats did it before. And Presi-
dent Obama and the Democrats will do it
again,” she said.
Clinton, whose job has shifted in
months from presidential candidate to
possible vice-presidential candidate, be-
came a party unifier.
“Whether you voted for me, or voted
for Barack, the time is now to unite as a
single party with a single purpose,” she
said.
Clinton’s main talking points towed
party lines: McCain isn’t the man, Obama
is. And as a unified party, they will reclaim
the White House.
“No way. No how. No McCain,” the
New York senator said.
Clinton’s message of unity and sup-
port continued. Reminding the world why
she ran for office — to create a world-class
education system; to fight for an America
defined by equality; to bring fiscal san-
ity back to Washington; and to restore
America’s standing in the world — are
all the same reasons why she is now an
Obama supporter.
“We need a president who under-
stands that the genius of America has
always depended on the strength and
vitality of the middle class,” she said to
thunderous applause.
(By James Kruger, jkruger1@mscd.edu)
Zac Taylor, Andrew Flohr-Spence, Julie
Vitkovskaya, Dana Pennington and
Cora Kemp contributed to this report.
 THE METROPOLITAN • SEPTERMBER 4, 2008 • FIVE DAYS • C7

V
Wednesday
ibrations from the Rage Against
the Machine show and upcoming
march could already be felt even
before the concert, with heat bearing
down on officers and organizers around
the Denver Coliseum.
At noon, two hours before the head-
liners were to perform, police had already
made one arrest at the Convergence Cen-
ter where protesters from Unconvention-
al Denver, Tent State and Recreate-’68
were gathered.
“I think (the police’s) mindset is con-
frontational,” said Matt Kellegrew, of
Olympia, Wash. “This is the first time all
three major protest groups are working
together on a march. The timing of this
isn’t random.”
With temperatures and anticipation
rising, more police made their way to the
area, lining the sidewalks; while inside
the Coliseum, the headliners took the
stage at 2 p.m.
“It looks like the First Amendment is
going to get some rigorous exercise,” Scott
Coble, an onlooker, said.

Rage hits the street

A t the frontline of the march, mem-
bers of the group Iraq Veterans
Against the War began the procession
down Brighton Boulevard with support-
ers and members of Rage Against the Ma-
chine at their heels.
Marchers carried signs in the shape
of tombstones for soldiers who had died
in Iraq and sang military marching songs
protesting the war.
“We have to show America that the
people that were over there oppose it; it’s
not right,” said Maggie Martin, a two-
time Iraq war veteran with the U.S. Army, Joshua Earl, left, and Sgt. Matthis Chiroux embrace in celebration Aug. 27, on Speer Boulevard. The Iraq Vet-
as she marched, wearing her full-dress
uniform and wiping beads of sweat away
erans Against the War wrote a letter to the Obama campaign with demands they want met. Chiroux said that
as the heat bore down. at this moment he felt “As if six years of wrong had been lifted.” Photo by Nicholas Duckworth, nduckwor@mscd.edu

Rage, unity reign in Denver

With an American flag draped over his
legs and being pushed in a wheelchair by
a supporter, writer and Vietnam veteran
Ron Kovic followed close behind the IVAW.
“I wholeheartedly support these men
and women,” he said. “History is being
made in Denver.”
Despite the sweltering sun and the
police presence, the goal was one of unity
and peace for the thousands who had
filed out of the concert and joined ranks
with IVAW.
“Nonviolence — that’s the name of
the game,” said political activist and em-
cee who goes by the name of S.O.N.
Demonstrators encouraged onlook-
ers to join in, and after three miles, 3,000
were marching through the heart of
downtown, occasionally stopping to let
crowds know what IVAW represented and
who they were.
Sweaty, fatigued and thirsty, the group
eventually made it to Auraria, where they
told passionate and emotional stories
about their experiences in Iraq.
Army Sgt. Kris Goldsmith told the
crowd how he and other soldiers would
remove the firing pins from the AK-47s of
the Iraqis they fought alongside, making
the weapons useless.
“We are not born monsters. We are
made monsters!” he shouted.
Still, the goal of the group was to
make themselves heard by the delegates
inside the Pepsi Center, and Marine Jeff
Key called for the group to be let inside
to read a letter to the delegates or Sen.
Barack Obama’s representatives.
When one reporter asked how long he
would wait, Key replied, “until I die.” And
he walked back into the group of soldiers.
Police formed a perimeter around all
of the protesters, but the focus on nonvio-
lence did not waver.
“The police are out here, and they seem
to be ready for war,” Army veteran Sholom
Keller said. “We are ready for peace.”
Peace prevails
A round 6:30 p.m., most of the fol-
lowers had departed and left a core
group of supporters and veterans, al-
though hope for the cause was reignited
when police allowed a representative
past the police blockade and into the
Pepsi Center.
There the representative met with an
Obama spokesperson to schedule a meet-
ing with the candidate. However, the meet-
ing has yet to take place as of deadline.
If attention outside on Denver’s streets,
outside the security zone surrounding the
Pepsi Center, focused on the largest protest
march of the convention, it surely went
unknown to most on the inside.
Delegate from Michigan Jerry Hall
wasn’t aware of the IVAW march.
Hall said the delegates she knew un-
derstood the positions of veterans and the
other protesters and respected their right to
free speech, but “it all has no impact on our
support of Barack Obama our nominee.”
A party united
A fter one of the closest primary sea-
sons in decades, attention inside
the arena was on the roll-call vote when
delegates officially vote for their choice for
presidential nominee.
While Obama’s nomination was
sealed, through the weeks outspoken Hill-
ary supporters urged her name to be part
of the roll call.
But with all eyes on New York’s del-
egation, Hillary Clinton stepped up and
said, “in the spirit of unity, with the goal
of victory, with faith in our party and our
country, let’s declare together in one voice,
right here, right now, that Barack Obama
is our candidate.” The crowd went wild.
The evening speeches included former
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and
cowboy-hat-wearing Ken Salazar, as well
as Bill Clinton, 2004 Democratic candi-
date John Kerry, and personal stories of
several Iraq veterans who drove home the
need for a change in foreign policy.
But the most anticiapted speech of the
night was Sen. Joe Biden’s. He continued
to hammer the message of change and
how it relates to foreign policy. He also
drummed home the message that McCain
is no different than Bush. The
“He’s not change; he’s more of the
same,” Biden would recite after citing spe-
police are
cific examples likening the GOP nominee out here,
to the president.
As a surprise at the end of the eve-
ning, Biden’s wife, Jill, announced a
and they
“special guest” and Obama walked out seem
on stage and addressed a shocked and ec-
static audience. ready for
Obama spoke only briefly and men-
war. We
tioned his elation to have Biden as a run-
ning mate and the chance to make history
“at Mile High stadium.”
are ready
The excitement and anticipation of for peace.
the chance to reclaim the White House
radiated from all those in attendance.
— Sholom
Obama’s mere presence uplifted the
crowd and optimism resonated through- Keller,
out the arena. member of
To the people in attendance, hope and IVAW
change are no longer far-fetched ideas, but
something that must be achieved. Losing
is not an option to this group. This is their
year, their time and Obama is their guy.
(By James Kruger, jkruger1@mscd.
edu) Zac Taylor, David Pollan, Andrew
Flohr-Spence, Julie Vitkovskaya,
Dana Pennington and Cora Kemp
contributed to this report.
C8 • FIVE DAYS • SEPTEMBER 4, 2008 • THE METROPOLITAN
Obama fulfills dream, defines change
F
our days and 45 years in
the making, before any-
one realized it happened,
a dream became reality.
On the anniversary
of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have
a dream” speech, a man filled with
hope and passion — and maybe just
enough smarts to outsmart the Re-
publicans this election cycle — came
to Denver to accept the nomination
as the party’s presidential candidate.
The man that would defy odds
and the Clintons would be Sen.
Barack Obama.
When it was evident Obama had
received enough votes to become the
Democratic nominee, his staff teamed
up with the Democratic Convention
Committee to plan an acceptance
speech fit for only Obama. They would
move the convention from the Pepsi
Center to Invesco Field at Mile High.
As far as the eye could see from
every direction, streams of people by
the hundreds and thousands formed
lines converging on the shiny and
silver Mile High Stadium. This was
what Denver and the history books
had been waiting for: the long jour-
ney under the baking sun to the cli-
max of the week, the grand finale
and a dream realized.
In front of 80,000 people Obama
took to the stage. Unlike his previous
speeches filled with ambitious rheto-
ric, the senator laid out his vision of
America and took his opponent, Sen.
John McCain, to the mat.
“I don’t know about you, but
I’m not willing to take a 10 percent
chance on change,” Obama said
referencing McCain’s voting record.
Obama said the Republican senator
has voted with President Bush 90
percent of the time.
Obama shared his own policies
on the economy, energy, education,
health care, the war in Iraq and
America’s overall global presence.
Obama promised a tax cut to 95
percent of America’s working fami-
lies.
“I don’t believe Sen. McCain
doesn’t care,” Obama said. “I just
don’t think he knows (about the mid-
dle class).”
Obama also promised to elimi-
nate tax cuts for companies who ex-
port jobs and give them to companies
who keep jobs in America. He would
also eliminate the capital gains tax
breaks.
The senator pledged America
would be free from foreign oil — for
We cannot walk alone. We cannot turn back, America.
Thursday
Thousands wave in the stands at Invesco Field at Mile High as Sen. Barack Obama,
the Democratic presidental nominnee, delievers his speech. Obama pledged to make
major changes to education, health care and energy. Photo by CORA KEMP, ckemp4@mscd.edu
the sake of the economy and security
of the country — in 10 years. He will
fund this incentive with $150 billion.
“Today we have tripled the
amount of imported fuels than we
did when Sen. McCain took office,”
he said. “Now is the time to change
this addiction.”
Obama said he would establish a
“world-class education system” for
America.
The senator said one of the rea-
— Sen. Barack Obama
sons he was able to stand at the 50-
yard line was because of his educa-
tion and the opportunities he and his
wife received.
“I will not settle for an America
where some kids do not have that
chance,” he said.
Promising to recruit an army
of teachers, he said he will demand
higher standards and early educa-
tion with a complete reform.
The senator briefly noted his
policies on health care saying he un-
derstands the plight of Americans
and that he wants every American
covered.
Obama also took a moment to
mention his goal of creating a policy
that would ensure equal pay for both
genders.
“I want my daughters to have
the exact same opportunities as your
sons,” he said.
Playing the war card late, Obama
challenged McCain to a game of
character, claiming he would be the
best commander-in-chief.
“If John McCain wants to follow
George Bush, that’s his choice,” he
said alluding to McCain’s policy on the
War in Iraq. “But that’s not the change
America needs. Don’t tell me the Dem-
ocrats won’t keep America safe.
“You don’t defeat a terrorist or-
ganization that operates in 80 coun-
tries by fighting in Iraq,” he said.
The nominee said he would
end the war responsibly and would
rebuild the army but would never
hesitate to defend this country. “I got
news for you John McCain, we all put
our country first,” he said to a stand-
ing ovation.
After laying out his policies,
Obama returned his address to the
audience.
“This election has never been
about me, it’s been about you,” he
said.
Obama said with the trust and
hard work of the American people
he can help restore greatness to the
country. It will be very hard, how-
ever, he said.
“It is that American spirit that
pushes us forward even when the
path is unclear,” he said. “I believe as
hard as it will be, change is coming.”
Obama stressed not only indi-
vidual duty to country but mutual
responsiblity.
“We cannot walk alone,” he said.
“We cannot turn back, America. We
cannot turn back when so much
work has to be done.”
(By Nic Garica, ngarci20@mscd.
edu.) Tara Moberly, James Kru-
ger, Andrew Flohr-Spence, Da-
vid Pollan and Geof Wollerman
contributed to this report.)