Twenty three year-old Ashley Baia is an activist within Barack Obama's presidential campaign, working as a field organizer in East Liberty, PA. Obama mentioned her in a "major address" on "the larger issue of race in this campaign" on the morning of March 18, 2008 in Philadelphia. He gave a previous iteration of this speech, including his mention of Ashley Baia at Dr. Martin Luther King's church in Atlanta, GA on Martin Luther King Day.

Towards the end of Obama's speech, he relates an anecdote about Baia. Baia was 9 when her mother got cancer. Cash was in short supply so Ashley convinced her mother she really wanted to eat mustard and relish sandwiches - a well-intentioned white lie because that was the cheapest thing to eat. Her mother got better after a year. Obama said: "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." After Ashley had finished her story she asked other at the roundtable why they were supporting Obama's campaign. An elderly black man said to everyone in the room, "I am here because of Ashley."

1. Date of Obama's speech: March 18, 2008
2. Location: National Constitution Center, Philadelphia
3. Speech Title: A More Perfect Union

1. Age: 23
2. Alumn: University of South Florida, Sarasota-Manatee
3. Also attended: Valencia Community College

• MySpace: Ashley Baia
• Topix.net: Ashley Baia
• Google News: Ashley Baia
• YouTube: Barack Obama: 'A More Perfect Union' (Full Speech) (Time: 37:10)
• Post-Gazette: Sandwich girl an Obama organizer here (March 20, 2008)
• New York Times: Clinton-Obama Quandary for Many Black Women (March 18, 2008)
  • "In trying to reach these voters, the Obama campaign has organized a network around beauty salons, a central gathering spot for black women, particularly in rural areas like this one...Ashley Baia, 23, the Obama organizer here in Horry County, is like a modern-day circuit rider, traveling from salon to salon on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, the busiest days for getting a hairdo. Ms. Baia makes repeated visits, hoping to develop relationships with the owners and customers..."
• Valeriegordon's Weblog: Denton for Obama (March 6, 2008)
• International Herald Tribune: On eve of King holiday, race dominates campaign (January 21, 2008)
  • "Obama told his audience a story of a young campaign aide in South Carolina named Ashley Baia. He prefaced the story by pointing out that she is white, and because of her belief in Obama, black voters are signing on."
• Zoom Info: Ashley Baia Profile
• Herald Tribune: USF College Democrats Earn State Offices (August 19, 2006)
• USF Sarasota-Manatee: Students at USF Sarasota-Manatee to host forum... (April 27, 2006)
• Herald Tribune: USF Students to Help Rebuild Gulf Coast (February 22, 2006)
• STAND UP Against Poverty: Tampa Bay Jumps In The Game

• MSNBC: "A More Perfect Union" Full Transcript (March 18, 2008)
• CNN: Obama to deliver speech on race, ex-pastor (March 18, 2008)
• NPR: Obama to Confront Racial Issues (March 18, 2008)
• The Guardian: Obama speech will try to defuse race issue (March 18, 2008)
• California Progress Report: Barack Obama's Speech... on Martin Luther King Day (January 21, 2008)
• YouTube: Barack Obama Speaks at Dr. King's Church (Time: 34:01)
  • Several sections of this speech were repeated in the A More Perfect Union speech.'