Obama NAACP Speech

Barack Obama addressed the NAACP on the last night of the group's 100th anniversary celebration on July 16, 2009.

He spoke vigorously and passionately to the oldest civil rights group in America, warning that discrimination is still a problem.http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=8104963&page=1%E2%80%9Dtarget=%27external%27%3ENAACP%E2%80%99s

Obama addressed African-Americans receiving less pay, Latino-Americans feeling unwelcomed in their own country and gays still denied equal rights.

Obama's message of responsibility has drawn some criticism from the left wing of his supporters. Most notable was Jesse Jackson's notorious off-color comment about the candidate caught by FOX News. As Jackson later explained, the context of the comment was his feeling that an emphasis on personal responsibility distracts from the responsibility of government to address social inequities.The Hill: Jesse Jackson Explains 'Crude & Hurtful' Comment (July 9, 2008)

• "We have to demand more responsibility from Washington. And yes we have to demand more responsibility from Wall Street. But we also have to demand more from ourselves. Now, I know some say I’ve been too tough on folks about this responsibility stuff. But I'm not going to stop talking about it."USA Today: Full Prepared Transcript of Obama's Speech (July 14, 2008)

• "As much as I'm out there fighting to make sure the government does its job and the marketplace does its job.... None of this will make a difference if we don't seize responsibility for our own lives... We need societal responsibility and individual responsibility."USA Today: Full Prepared Transcript of Obama's Speech (July 14, 2008)