American Brothers All In celebration of Langston Hughes, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. President-elect Barack Obama January, 2009 Doherty Middle School Mrs. Palardy, Team 8A Opening Song:

Langston, Martin, and Barack This is a time to celebrate the success and achievement of three strong American men. Our nation has had many powerful, influential, determined leaders who are models of courage, perseverance, and vision. Listen in as these leaders’ words remind us of what it means to be an American, then and now.

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes, best known as Langston Hughes, (February 1, 1902 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, novelist, playwright, short story writer, and columnist. Hughes is known for his work during the Harlem Renaissance.poetnovelist playwrightshort storycolumnistHarlem Renaissance

Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. surprised and captured the attention of a nation during the civil rights movement with his creed of non- violent resistance. King put his belief into action and proved that this was an effective method to combat racial segregation. King began to concentrate on discovering a solution to end social ills. He read up on the writings of Henry David Thoreau becoming "fascinated by the idea of refusing to cooperate with an evil system.“ But perhaps the most important sources of his developing philosophy were the Bible and the writings of Mahatma Gandhi.

Barack Obama With his black Kenyan father and white American mother, his upbringing in Honolulu and Jakarta, and his Ivy League education, Obama's early life experiences differ markedly from those of African-American politicians who launched their careers in the 1960s through participation in the civil rights movement. Echoing the inaugural address of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Obama acknowledged his youthful image saying: "I wouldn't be here if, time and again, the torch had not been passed to a new generation. A popular catch phrase distilled the concept: "Rosa sat so Martin could walk; Martin walked so Obama could run; Obama is running so our children can fly."

Sources Some of these sites may lead you to other, unauthorized sites. Please view responsibly For more information on the work of Langston Hughes, see To hear Langston’s Hughes poem read aloud, visit the DMS website: To read more about Rev. Martin Luther King Jr, visit: To see and hear Rev. King’s speech at the March on Washington, go to: To read more about President-elect Obama, visit To see and hear Senator Barack Obama’s March, 2008 speech on race, go to Additional sources: John F. Kennedy’s inaugural speech: – The slideshow’s opening song, “Abraham, Martin, and John” –