Barack Obama's Last Fourth of July Speech Talked about Basic Values, with a Touch of Humor

Obama Speaking at the White House with Lamar and Monáe

Barack Obama gave his last Fourth of July speech as president in the East Room of the White House on July 4, 2016. I'll talk about what he said and why he said it on this ceremonial occasion; a later post will contrast it with the speech that President Trump plans to give in Washington later today. Check my blog tonight!

As I've said several times before, a good ceremonial speech talks about values; the speaker uses the occasion to teach the audience a larger lesson. Obama began by thanking performers Janelle Monáe and Kendrick Lamar. He stated his thesis: "And the Fourth 4 July is about family, it's about the American family, it's about us getting together with the people we love most."

He next thanked the military: "We all know that our freedoms are dependent on an incredible group of men and women in uniform and their families to look out for us every single day." He asked the audience to applaud for service members who were attending.

Americans know that we celebrate the Fourth of July by roasting hotdogs and shooting off fireworks.  Obama said: "And obviously 4 July – we enjoyed the hotdogs, we enjoy the burgers, we enjoy the barbecue, we enjoyed the day off for a lot of us, we enjoy the fireworks." He added, however, that "it's important to remember what a miracle this country is. How incredible – how incredibly lucky we are that people, generations ago, were willing to take up arms and fight for freedom." Yet, as he praised the country, Obama acknowledged that there is always room to improve: "And then people, inside this country, understanding that there were imperfections in our union and were willing to keep on fighting on behalf of extending that freedom to all people and not just some." That last comment probably alluded to the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement.

Obama expanded his speech to talk about "respecting each other" (important words in our hyper-partisan age). He acknowledged the less fortunate: "And it involves us recognizing that there are still people in this country who are going hungry – and they're not free because of that. There are still people in this country who can't find work – and freedom without the ability to contribute to society and put a roof over your head or look after your family, that's not yet what we aim for."

He then tied his points together: "we celebrate, we have fun, we marvel at everything that's been done before, but we also have to recommit ourselves to making sure that everybody in this country is free; that everybody has opportunity; that everybody gets a fair shot; that we look after all our veterans when they come home; that we look after our military families and give them a fair shake; that every child has a good education."

Those concluding comments asserted important values and implied policies: the traditional liberal issues such as poverty and education were, in Obama's view, part of the struggle for freedom.

Obama ended his speech with a personal touch: explaining that "it's the job of a father to embarrass his daughters,"  Obama led the crowd by singing "Happy Birthday" for his daughter Malia, quite out of tune.

Fireworks on a cloudy July 4, 2016 from the WH

Overall, Obama's speech was casual, thoughtful, and charming. He spoke without notes. To the slight extent that he got political, by focusing on the downtrodden and unfortunate, his comments were muted and tasteful.

Let us talk for a moment about the setting. Obama had hoped to give the speech on the South Lawn of the White House but bad weather drove him indoors. There were no armored vehicles and his speech was separate from the fireworks display that followed on the National Mall. Obama spoke in shirtsleeves, with his arm draped casually around performer Monáe. Bad weather is also predicted for President Trump's celebration today. We'll see how that goes.

2012 Naturalization Ceremony

P.S.:  On 4 July 2012, Obama held a naturalization ceremony for U.S. service personnel – welcoming immigrants as new citizens.

P.P.S.: Contrary to popular belief, it is quite unclear whether it is legal to sing "Happy Birthday;" although the song has been ruled to be under copyright, the copyright holder is supposedly legally unknown!

P.P.S. If you want to learn a lot more about ceremonial speaking, here's a really good book by Mary Stuckey. 

P.P.P.S: Several of my research publications talk about ceremonial speaking (also called epideictic speaking, etc.). Click on the Publications tab above; the publishers have released several of them for public viewing at no charge.  

Images from https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/