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Barack Obama's historic speech last week on the state of race relations (transcript here) was certainly instigated by the political costs inflicted on his campaign by the Reverend Wright controversy, but it will no doubt go down as one of the most important of our generation. Written by Obama himself and delivered in a measured tone using - aghast! - compound sentences, sections will be read in history classes for generations to come, standing toe to toe with Kennedy's speech on religion.

He began:

I am the son of a black man from Kenya and a white woman from Kansas. I was raised with the help of a white grandfather who survived a Depression to serve in Patton's Army during World War II and a white grandmother who worked on a bomber assembly line at Fort Leavenworth while he was overseas. I've gone to some of the best schools in America and lived in one of the world's poorest nations. I am married to a black American who carries within her the blood of slaves and slaveowners - an inheritance we pass on to our two precious daughters. I have brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, uncles and cousins of every race and every hue, scattered across three continents, and for as long as I live, I will never forget that in no other country on Earth is my story even possible.

He continued,

Some will see this as an attempt to justify or excuse comments that are simply inexcusable. I can assure you it is not. I suppose the politically safe thing to do would be to move on from this episode and just hope that it fades into the woodwork. We can dismiss Reverend Wright as a crank or a demagogue, just as some have dismissed Geraldine Ferraro, in the aftermath of her recent statements, as harboring some deep-seated bias.

And then he leaned into the "juice" of why he rose to the occasion to make this speech:

But race is an issue that I believe this nation cannot afford to ignore right now. We would be making the same mistake that Reverend Wright made in his offending sermons about America -- to simplify and stereotype and amplify the negative to the point that it distorts reality.

The fact is that the comments that have been made and the issues that have surfaced over the last few weeks reflect the complexities of race in this country that we've never really worked through -- a part of our union that we have not yet made perfect. And if we walk away now, if we simply retreat into our respective corners, we will never be able to come together and solve challenges like health care or education or the need to find good jobs for every American.

It's that last point which lays bare why this man is different, why he is a natural born leader...and perhaps why he is ahead of his time. Is America really ready for the mature and measured discussion and debate that Obama is ready to lead? Wright's anger, although certainly excessive by any standard, is entirely common in the black community. And it is this characteristic that Obama is addressing. Granted, he was forced by the trajectory of the campaign to embrace this dialogue, but instead of running away from the controversy, he's faced it head on. Which is good and necessary for this country.

Remember, black people didn't get the right to vote until 1965 (for all intents and purposes). It's now barely 40 years past that date, but over 350 years since slaves were first brought over here from Africa. Of course the legacy of slavery is fresh and real, and Obama's speech is just another layer in the healing process. A historic layer, for sure, but one that is so necessary whether we're really ready or not. We can only hope that he is the Democratic nominee so that this country gets a chance to evolve - to discuss in a serious manner these difficult topics, if only for a few months. The contrast between him and McCain couldn't be greater ("YouTube" vs. "FeedingTube," as Bill Maher so eloquently put it the other night).

Perhaps the country will even pick him to lead us for the next four to eight years, showing the world that the good ole U.S. of A. can truly get past its history of bigotry and prejudice. We can only hope.

Watch the entire speech:

It is definitely worth watching the whole thing. It is a powerful, moving speech that treats listeners as if they were adults. I just hope the American People are adult enough to get it.

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