President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama dance during the 2009 Nobel Banquet in the Hall of Mirrors at the Grand Hotel in Oslo, Norway, Dec. 10, 2009 (Photo by Pete Souza)
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President Obama looks at the Nobel Peace Prize medal for the first time at the Norwegian Nobel Institute in Oslo, Norway, Dec. 10, 2009 (Photo by Pete Souza)
….. holding the Nobel Prize medal and diploma following the ceremony at the Oslo City Hall (Photo by Pete Souza)
President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama depart Oslo City Hall following the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony (Photo by Pete Souza)
First Lady Michelle Obama looks at pictures of past Nobel Prize recipients at the Norwegian Nobel Institute (Photo by Pete Souza)
President Obama looks out a window at Slottet Royal Palace of Norway following his meeting with King Harald V and Queen Sonja in Oslo (Photo by Pete Souza)
President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama wave from a balcony at the Grand Hotel as they greet the Torch Parade in Oslo (Photo by Pete Souza)
President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama arrive at the 2009 Nobel Banquet in the Hall of Mirrors at the Grand Hotel in Oslo (Photo by Samantha Appleton)
President Obama’s moving remarks last Friday July 19, 2013, that Trayvon Martin could have been him 35 years ago took me back to another high note in his presidency – the Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech in Oslo, Dec 10, 2009.
Nobel Prize acceptance 12-10-2025
Oslo 12-10-2025
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Both the polite audience seated in the cavernous Norwegian auditorium, as well as a global audience of admirers and skeptics all listened with rapt attention. President Obama could have chosen to deliver saccharine pabulum about ideals of peace as gloss over his global superstardom. He didn’t. Instead he punched his audience in the gut with uncomfortable truths about:
Pres. Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize Speech 12-10-2025
1. Fundamental difference between his responsibilities as head of a state embroiled in 2 wars who must deploy military force when needed to protect his nation, and those of other Nobel Peace Prize recipients such as Mahatma Gandhi or Martin Luther King Jr. who served as conscience leaders and advocated non-violence as means to achieve justice.
2. The Niebuhrian concept of Just War, which stipulates that there IS evil in the world that does not disappear through diplomacy, prayer or concession. It must be fought with blood and treasure.
3. An active peace that requires that we all EXPAND OUR MORAL IMAGINATION, or else the assurance of human dignity and societal growth will be stunted
Pres Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize Speech 12-10-2025
From the 29:10 minute mark, Pres. Obama described the concept thus: “Agreements among nations. Strong institutions. Support for human rights. Investments in development. All these are vital ingredients in bringing about the evolution that President Kennedy spoke about. And yet, I do not believe that we will have the will, the determination, the staying power, to complete this work without something more — and that’s the continued EXPANSION OF OUR MORAL IMAGINATION; an insistence that there’s something IRREDUCIBLE THAT WE ALL SHARE.
As the world grows smaller, you might think it would be easier for human beings to recognize how similar we are; to understand that we’re all basically seeking the same things; that we all hope for the chance to live out our lives with some measure of happiness and fulfillment for ourselves and our families.
And yet somehow, given the dizzying pace of globalization, the cultural leveling of modernity, it perhaps comes as no surprise that people fear the loss of what they cherish in their particular identities — their race, their tribe, and perhaps most powerfully their religion. In some places, this fear has led to conflict. At times, it even feels like we’re moving backwards….”
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama dance during the 2009 Nobel Banquet in the Hall of Mirrors at the Grand Hotel in Oslo, Norway, Dec. 10, 2009. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama dance during the 2009 Nobel Banquet in the Hall of Mirrors at the Grand Hotel in Oslo, Norway, Dec. 10, 2009. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
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I don't have a question, just a very humble thank you. I just saw your post explaining Obama's recent executive order prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in the workplace, and immediately teared up. Hi, I'm Janessa. I'm 17, and I'm lesbian. Sometimes the way our society orients around the topic of homosexuality is a bit frightening. It feels like something a high schooler shouldn't have to deal with. But this order gives me strength. So thank you, for this huge leap.
A woman looking into going into media arts and commercial arts fields, I'm likely to be paid significantly less for my skills than a man with the same abilities. Will you continue to fight for equal gender pay?
How is the president working towards marriage equality?
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