To Inspire You

If there's a child on the south side of Chicago who can't read, that matters to me, even if it's not my child. If there's a senior citizen somewhere who can't pay for their prescription, who has to choose between medicine and the rent, that makes my life poorer - even if it's not my grandparent. If there's an Arab-American or Mexican-American family being rounded up by John Ashcroft without benefit of an attorney or due process, I know that that threatens my civil liberties. And I don't have to be a woman to be concerned that the Supreme Court is trying to take away a woman's right, because I know that my rights are next. It is that fundamental belief - I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper - that makes this country work.

Barack Obama »

Today In History

• In 1863 - The Fifty-Fourth Massachusetts Colored Regiment launched its assault on Fort Wagner, South Carolina. Sgt. William H. Carney won Congressional Medal of Honor for his bravery in the charge and became the first Black soldier to receive the coveted award.