+
upworthy
More

The 7 best lines from Obama's Mandela-inspired pep talk.

Speaking in Johannesburg, South Africa, former President Barack Obama gave the world a much-needed pep talk.

The speech — part of the 2018 Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture — centered on a theme of "creating conditions for bridging divides, working across ideological lines, and resisting oppression and inequality." Sounds like something we could all use, especially lately. Speaking for nearly an hour and a half, Obama avoided any direct critiques of Donald Trump and his policies. Indirectly, however ... that's a different story.

Photo by Gianluigi Guercia/AFP/Getty Images.


1. "Maybe it would be useful to step back for a moment and try to get some perspective."

With so much happening in the world, it's good to look to our past for advice. Very few of the problems facing us today are actually new. We've seen what toxic leaders look like, what their rise to power entails, and how they've fallen. We've seen what happens when pseudo-democracies use propaganda on their own people. We've seen how the world slips into war. Knowing that, we can learn how to fight back.

"But in the strange and uncertain times that we are in — and they are strange, and they are uncertain, with each day's news cycles bringing more head spinning and disturbing headlines — I thought maybe it would be useful to step back for a moment and try to get some perspective, so I hope you'll indulge me," Obama said during the speech's opening.

Photo by Marco Longari/AFP/Getty Images.

2. "You have to believe in facts. Without facts, there's no basis for cooperation."

This is an important point and one that probably doesn't get talked about nearly enough. If two (or more) groups with opposing goals want to work together, it's important they're at least able to agree on a common set of facts. During his speech, Obama used the example of climate change and opposition to the Paris Climate Agreement, calling on politicians to no longer "reject the very concept of objective truth."

"I can find common ground for those who oppose the Paris Accords," he said. "Because, for example, they might say, 'It's not going to work. We can't get everybody to cooperate.' They might say, 'It's more important for us to provide cheap energy for the poor, even if it means in the short term that there's more pollution.' At least I can have a debate with them about that, and I can show them why I think clean energy is the better path, especially for poor countries. That you can leap-frog old technologies. I can't find common ground if somebody says, 'Climate change is just not happening' when almost all the world's scientists tell us it is."

Photo by Gianluigi Guercia/AFP/Getty Images.

3. "We have to stop pretending that countries that hold an election where the winner somehow magically gets 90% of the vote ... is a democracy."

Democracy is a fragile thing, and we can't take it for granted. Too often, even now, countries host sham elections that make it all but impossible for the government's chosen candidates to lose. This is a democracy in name only, and it's time we stopped accepting this version of rule.

"Democracy depends on strong institutions. It's about minority rights and checks and balances and freedom of speech and freedom of expression and a free press and the right to protest and petition the government and an independent judiciary, and everybody having to follow the law."

4. "I am not being alarmist. I'm simply stating the facts."

There is a lot happening in the world that we should be worried about, and there will be people who try to make you feel like you're delusional for noticing it. The truth is that if we want to actually address the problem, we have to first acknowledge that it exists. Putting our heads in the sand won't save us.

"Look around — strongman politics are ascendant, suddenly, whereby elections and some pretense of democracy are (maintaining) the form of it, where those in powers seek to undermine every institution or norm that gives democracy meaning," he said, noting that the spread of these political actors is moving "at a pace that would have seemed unimaginable just a few years ago."

Photo by Marco Longari/AFP/Getty Images.

5. "We now stand at a crossroads."

If there's hope of coming out of all this conflict unscathed, we absolutely have to reject cynicism in favor of hope. It's worked before, and it can work again.

"How should we respond? Should we see that wave of hope that we felt with [Mandela]'s release from prison? From the Berlin Wall coming down? Should we see that hope that we had as naive and misguided?"
"Let me tell you what I believe. I believe in Nelson Mandela's vision. I believe in a vision shared by Gandhi and King, and Abraham Lincoln. I believe in a vision of equality and justice and freedom and multiracial democracy built on a premise that all people are created equal and are endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights. And I believe that a world governed by such principles is possible and that it can achieve more peace and more cooperation in pursuits of a common good. That's what I believe."

6. "If [people] can learn to hate, they can be taught to love."

This is an easy and important lesson to remember. It's also pretty hopeful. There are a lot of hateful people in this world, but they weren't always like that, and they don't always have to be like that moving forward.

"[Mandela] reminds us that no one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate. And if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love. For love comes more naturally to the human heart — love comes more naturally to the human heart. Let's remember that truth. ... Let's be joyful in our struggle to make that truth manifest here on earth. So that 100 years from now future generations will look back and say, 'They kept the march going — that's why we live under new banners of freedom.'"

Photo by Marco Longari/AFP/Getty Images.

7. "Keep believing. Keep marching. Keep building. Keep raising your voice."

In uncertain times, it's easy to give in to apathy, to feel helpless. It's easy to shrug and tell yourself that you're just one person and ask what good one person can really do. Obama rejects this, especially now, quoting Mandela in defense of optimism.

"Every generation has the opportunity to remake the world. Mandela said 'Young people are capable when aroused of bringing down the towers of oppression and raising the banners of freedom.' Now is a good time to be aroused. Now is a good time to be fired up."

Watch Obama's entire speech below.

Wear your values with products from PSA Supply Co., an independent site owned by our parent company, GOOD Worldwide Inc. GOOD makes money when you buy these products, and 10% of profits go to The Center for Community Change Action. Use discount code UPWORTHY to get 15% off your first order!
True

Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

Keep ReadingShow less
Democracy

This Map Reveals The True Value Of $100 In Each State

Your purchasing power can swing by 30% from state to state.

Image by Tax Foundation.

Map represents the value of 100 dollars.

As the cost of living in large cities continues to rise, more and more people are realizing that the value of a dollar in the United States is a very relative concept. For decades, cost of living indices have sought to address and benchmark the inconsistencies in what money will buy, but they are often so specific as to prevent a holistic picture or the ability to "browse" the data based on geographic location.

The Tax Foundation addressed many of these shortcomings using the most recent (2015) Bureau of Economic Analysis data to provide a familiar map of the United States overlaid with the relative value of what $100 is "worth" in each state. Granted, going state-by-state still introduces a fair amount of "smoothing" into the process — $100 will go farther in Los Angeles than in Fresno, for instance — but it does provide insight into where the value lies.

Keep ReadingShow less
Family

Woman bakes cheeky curse word pies for her grandma and it becomes a quirky holiday tradition

2023's pie is an homage to her favorite word to use while stuck in traffic.

Canva

You never know where a holiday tradition will come from.

Tried-and-true holiday traditions certainly have their merit, but there’s something quite special, magical even, about discovering personal rituals that commemorate one’s unique life. In my household, for instance, nothing quite rings in the Christmas spirit like sipping my partner’s delicious coquito and putting up a cardboard gingerbread house for my cats.

The beauty of creating customized holiday traditions is that they can be as festive, sentimental, or as silly as you want them to be. And you never know how one small moment can become the catalyst for a tradition that sparks joy year after year.

For Jess Lydon, that tradition is baking expletive-laden pies for Thanksgiving. (This is your profanity warning—the images below contain swear words.)

Keep ReadingShow less

The grandmother was suspicious.

A grandmother always felt her middle granddaughter Lindsay, 15, looked slightly different from the rest of the family because she had blonde, curly hair, while the rest of her siblings’ hair was dark “I thought genetics was being weird and I love her,” she wrote on Reddit’s AITA forum.

But things became serious after Linday’s parents “banned” her from taking things a step further and getting a DNA test. If the family was sure their daughter was theirs, why would they forbid her from seeking clarity in the situation? After the parents laid down the law, the situation started to seem a little suspicious.

“I told my son and [daughter-in-law] that there was something fishy around her birth she needed to know. They denied it and told me to leave it alone,” the grandma wrote.

Keep ReadingShow less

Peter Bence's piano cover of "Africa" by Toto

Peter Bence’s performance of “Africa” by Toto has over 17 million views on YouTube because of his creative reimagining of the song and, well, just about everyone loves “Africa.”

Bence is a Hungarian composer and producer who has become a viral sensation for his Michael Jackson, Queen, Sia, and Beatles covers. He has over 1.1 million followers on YouTube and has toured the globe, playing in more than 40 countries across four continents.

His performance of “Africa'' is unique because it opens with him creating a rhythm track and looping it by strategically tapping the piano and rubbing its strings to create the sound of shakers and congo drums.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joy

Family posts a very chill note to neighbors explaining why their dog is on the roof

“We appreciate your concern but please do not knock on our door.."

via Reddit

Meet Huckleberry the dog.

If you were taking a stroll through a quiet neighborhood and happened to catch a glance of this majestic sight, you might bat an eye. You might do a double take. If you were (somewhat understandably) concerned about this surprising roof-dog's welfare, you might even approach the homeowners to tell them, "Uh, I'm not sure if you know...but there's a...dog...on your ROOF."

Well, the family inside is aware that there's often a dog on their roof. It's their pet Golden, Huckleberry, and he just sorta likes it up there.

Keep ReadingShow less
Family

12 hilariously relatable comics about life as a new mom.

Embarrassing stains on your T-shirt, sniffing someone's bum to check if they have pooped, the first time having sex post-giving birth — as a new mom, your life turns upside-down.

All illustrations by Ingebritt ter Veld. Reprinted here with permission.

Some good not so good moments with babies.



Embarrassing stains on your T-shirt, sniffing someone's bum to check if they have pooped, the first time having sex post-giving birth — as a new mom, your life turns upside-down.

Illustrator Ingebritt ter Veld and Corinne de Vries, who works for Hippe-Birth Cards, a webshop for birth announcements, had babies shortly after one another.

Keep ReadingShow less