Obama: Civil- rights leaders paved my way

NEW YORK (AP) — President Barack Obama on Thursday traced his historic rise to power to the vigor and valor of black civil-rights leaders, telling the NAACP that the sacrifice of others “began the journey that has led me here.” The nation’s first black president bluntly warned, though, that racial barriers persist.

“Make no mistake: The pain of discrimination is still felt in America,” the president said in honoring the organization’s 100th convention.

Painting himself as the beneficiary of the NAACP’s work, Obama cited historical figures from W.E.B. DuBois to Thurgood Marshall to explain how the path to the presidency was cleared by visionaries.

Obama’s remarks, steeped in his personal biography as the son of a white mother from Kansas and black father from Kenya, challenged the audience — those in the room and those beyond — to take greater responsibility for their own future. He told parents to take a more active role and residents to pay better attention to their schools.

Rousing up a friendly crowd, Obama made his first speech so directly linked with race since he took office; the White House says he worked on it for about two weeks. Implicit in his appearance: He is seeking the backing of the powerful NAACP and its members for his ambitious domestic agenda.

The president said that in the current down economy, blacks are suffering high unemployment and are afflicted with more diseases but are less likely to have health insurance. He said that a black child is about five times as likely as a white child to be sent to jail.

Obama touted education as essential to improving the lives of all children. He said the state of schools is an American problem, not a black one.

Obama expanded his message of equal rights beyond the black communities. He said many Americans still face discrimination.