Biography of President Barack Obama
Throughout Black History Month the country remembers and celebrates the accomplishments of notable black figures throughout history. This year the celebration is more poignant in some people’s minds due to the historical presidency of Barack Obama — inaugurated in January, 2009 as the nation’s first African American United States president. It seems fitting to talk about Obama’s path to the presidency for those yet unfamiliar with his early years.
Barack Hussein Obama was born on August 4, 1961 in Hawaii to Ann Dunham and Barack Obama Sr. Obama Sr. hailed from Kenya, where he worked as a goat herder with his father, who was a domestic servant to the British. President Obama’s mother grew up in Kansas, where her father worked on oil rigs during the Great Depression. Mr. Dunham enlisted in the armed forces during World War II and eventually, through the Federal Housing Program, the family settled down in Hawaii.
Dunham and Obama Sr. met in Hawaii at the University of Hawaii. Dunham was a student there and Obama Sr. had won a scholarship enabling him to move from Kenya to pursue opportunities in America. They married and had Barack.
After several years of marriage Dunham and Obama Sr. divorced and he moved back to Kenya. Dunham remarried when her son was 6 and the family relocated to Indonesia. He attended school briefly in Jakarta and in Hawaii.
Obama moved to New York during his college years and graduated from Columbia University. He had plans to attend law school and enter the corporate world, but put those plans on hold to make a difference for underprivileged communities — following the lessons of empathy his mother had taught him growing up. Obama relocated to Chicago in 1985 and became a community organizer with a church-based group seeking to improve living conditions in poor neighborhoods plagued with crime and high unemployment. Although the group had some success, Obama sought for change on a greater level, and therefore figured a life of public service would do the greater good.
Obama earned his law degree from Harvard in 1991. He returned to Chicago where he practiced as a civil rights lawyer and taught constitutional law. His path eventually brought him to run for the U.S. Senate, to which he was elected in 2004. He became the third African American to be elected to the Senate. The senator decided after eight years of service to try his hand at a bid for the presidency.
After a long presidential campaign with running mate Senator Joseph Biden, Obama won the election against Senator John McCain as the Democratic nominee. He is the first ever African American United States president.
On a personal note, Obama is married to Michelle, whom he met at the law firm of Sidley Austin. Michelle was employed by the firm and Obama was a summer intern. The couple wed in 1992. Michelle and Barack Obama have two daughters, Malia and Sasha. The family resided on the South Side of Chicago until Obama was elected as the 44th President of the United States. They have since moved into their new residence at the White House.
Updated 01-16-2011
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