Barrack Obama

Gavyn Fischer

April 5 16

English 8-7 

April PPOW

Barack Obama

Barack Obama is the 44th President and the first ever African-American President of United States of America. He severed his first election in 2008 and his second in 2012 but what about before he ran for president. Born August 4, 1961 in Honolulu Hawaii. He is six-feet, one-inch. Married to Michelle Obama, his mom is Ann Dunham and his father is Barack Obama, Sr. He has two children Malia Ann Obama and Natasha Obama. He went to Harvard Law School. He was a community organizer, a civil rights lawyer, and a teacher before he ran for president. He was elected Illinois state senate in 1996. Then US senate in 2004.

His mother Ann Dunham was born on an Army base in Wichita, Kansas, during World War I. After the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor Dunham's Father enlisted in the Army. Then marched across Europe in General George Patton's army. Dunham's mother Madelyn went to work on a Bomber assembly line. After the war, the couple studied on the G.I. Bill. Bought a house and after a couple moves and ended up in Hawaii.

Obama's father was born of Luo ethnicity in Nyanza Province, Kenya. He grew up in Hawaii herding goats. He earned a scholarship and made his dream come true by going to Hawaii University. While studying at the University he met Ann Dunham and they got married on February 2, 1961. Then Barack was born six months later.

As a child Barrack did not have a relationship with his father. His father relocated to Massachusetts to attend Harvard University. Barracks parents then separated months later and officially were divorced in March 1964. When there son was two then he went back to Kenya.

From age six through ten he lived with his mother and stepfather in Indonesia. Concerned for his education his mother sent him to Hawaii to live with his grandparents Stanley and Madelyn Dunham. He went to school at Hawaii's prestigious Punahou School from fifth grade until high school graduation day. While Obama was in school his mother divorced his step father and returned to Hawaii to study at the University. Then she left Hawaii again to Indonesia to do research study. He was not a bad student but not an outstanding one. He admitted that he dabbled in drugs and alcohol including marijuana and cocaine.

He was not raised in a religious household because his grandparents and parents were non believers. Obama left Hawaii for college he first went to a college in Los Angeles then went to a school in New York City for his last two years. He read deeply about political and national affairs.  Obama accepted a job to be a community organizer in Chicago's south mostly African American side.

His main goal while he was a community organizer was to organize residents of Altgeld Gardens to pressure Chicago's city hall to improve conditions in the poorly maintained public housing project. He efforts met some success he could not get things done without a large degree. So Obama enrolled at Harvard Law school. He won his election by persuading the journal's outnumbered conservative staffers that he would treat their views fairly.