The most presidential lorem ipsum in history.
That we can have an idea and start our own business without paying a bribe. We will all have to make concessions to achieve this. So when they are told to bus their children to a school across town; when they hear that an African American is getting an advantage in landing a good job or a spot in a good college because of an injustice that they themselves never committed; when they're told that their fears about crime in urban neighborhoods are somehow prejudiced, resentment builds over time. But if we do, I can tell you that in the next election, we'll be talking about some other distraction. There is a young, twenty-three year old white woman named Ashley Baia who organized for our campaign in Florence, South Carolina. Among some Muslims, there is a disturbing tendency to measure one's own faith by the rejection of another's.
That's not what I'm talking about. More of you have lost your homes and even more are watching your home values plummet. Passions fly on immigration, but I don't know anyone who benefits when a mother is separated from her infant child or an employer undercuts American wages by hiring illegal workers. So let there be no doubt: Islam is a part of America. That's why we're partnering with a coalition of forty-six countries.
But the anger is real; it is powerful; and to simply wish it away, to condemn it without understanding its roots, only serves to widen the chasm of misunderstanding that exists between the races. What the nay-sayers don't understand is that this election has never been about me. But it was not violence that won full and equal rights. Islam has a proud tradition of tolerance.
The pundits, the pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into Red States and Blue States; Red States for Republicans, Blue States for Democrats. More recently, tension has been fed by colonialism that denied rights and opportunities to many Muslims, and a Cold War in which Muslim-majority countries were too often treated as proxies without regard to their own aspirations. Some suggest that it isn't worth the effort - that we are fated to disagree, and civilizations are doomed to clash.
And just as we keep our keep our promise to the next generation here at home, so must we keep America's promise abroad. That experience guides my conviction that partnership between America and Islam must be based on what Islam is, not what it isn't. Too many tears have flowed. And I am hopeful that all countries in the region can share in this goal.
Thank you. And may God's peace be upon you.