AP Lang Podcast Transcript
By: Frederick Allen, James Gleason, Joe Rainis, and Elijah Valenciano
Link to original speech:
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/jessejackson1984dnc.htm
Jesse Jackson’s 1984 DNC Speech
Introduction/ Background Information
-music-
Joe: Hey guys welcome back. This is your local ROYGBIV station. Today is July, 19th,
1984. I’m Joe, and I’m here with Fred and Elijah, and we’re talking about the Democratic
National Convention that happened last night. So how many of you tuned in to that?
Elijah: Yes I did.
Fred: Yeah I actually did not.
Joe: Really?
Fred: Really. How did it go?
Elijah: There were actually a couple of goods speeches that day. Some of the more
notable ones were Senator Hart and Cranston. A list of the other speakers can be found
on Political Graveyard: 1984 Democratic National Convention. But I think that Jessie
Jackson’s speech really stood out the most.
Joe: So Fred, what do you know about Jessie Jackson?
Fred: He’s a civil rights activist, isn’t he?
Elijah: Well…I know that’s the reason why he dropped out of the Chicago Theological
Seminary. He became a Baptist minister regardless. He then became a public figure when
he founded the Rainbow Coalition according to the Encyclopedia of World Biography.
Now he’s most visible African American political leader.
Fred: Yeah! Now I’m starting to remember. He established his political career during the
emergence of Reaganomics and what Jackson himself called, “the Regan Regime.” He
greatly supported Reagan right?
Elijah: Well actually…. Jackson’s liberal policies differ greatly the Reagan Doctrine.
The policies he promotes focus on alleviating suffering among everyone. They also
promote the convergence of all American peoples to form one unified Democratic Party.
Joe: Then he began his 1984 campaign for the Presidency on a platform strongly rooted
in the values you mentioned and the values of the Rainbow Coalition. Now he’s the 2nd
African American in history running for the office of President! These facts were
compiled from a web page on Jesse Jackson from The Library ThinkQuest.
Thesis
Fred: So what did you think the main message from last night was, Joe?
Joe: Well obviously, he acknowledges that all groups of people have their own individual
problems and that we can come together as a nation to solve them. And that NOW is the
time with the Democratic party. It really had a unifying and optimistic tone.
Fred: But why did he do this? What was his purpose?
Elijah: … I felt like- I really felt like he was doing well to draw everybody together.
Umm you know, he really tugged at the hearts of all the groups of people whom he
mentioned by showing that he knew what their problems were and what they were feeling
and how their party would alleviate their stresses…
Joe: Well I guess we have to remember that his real purpose was to convince people to
vote for him since he is running for the presidency.
Elijah: You know, some of our listeners who didn’t hear the speech might be confused,
and each section of the speech had something to say. Why don’t we break down an
abridged version of the speech into sections and analyze them chunk by chunk. Shall we?
Fred: Let’s.
Section 1
Tonight we come together bound by our faith in a mighty God, with genuine respect and
love for our country, and inheriting the legacy of a great Party, the Democratic Party,
which is the best hope for redirecting our nation on a more humane, just, and peaceful
course.
This is not a perfect party. We are not a perfect people. Yet, we are called to a perfect
mission. Our mission: to feed the hungry; to clothe the naked; to house the homeless; to
teach the illiterate; to provide jobs for the jobless; and to choose the human race over the
nuclear race.
We are gathered here this week to nominate a candidate and adopt a platform which will
expand, unify, direct, and inspire our Party and the nation to fulfill this mission. My
constituency is the desperate, the damned, the disinherited, the disrespected, and the
despised. They are restless and seek relief. They have voted in record numbers. They
have invested the faith, hope, and trust that they have in us. The Democratic Party must
send them a signal that we care. I pledge my best not to let them down...
Joe: That’s one of my favorite sections. How would we break it down?
Fred: Well we have to remember that rhetoric is one of the most important things to
express anything in speech
Elijah: Keeping that in mind, we brought in professional rhetoric analyzer James
Rhetorman.
James: Greetings gentlemen. It is I, James Rhetorman here to help you guys analyze the
figurative language in your speech.
Joe: Thanks for being here today James!
Fred: Well back to the speech. I noticed that the first thing that Reverend Jackson did
was tie his entire speech to God and faith; in fact, he made sure to say that they were
quote, “bound… in a mighty God” to relate to his message. He also mentions respect and
love for the United States.
Elijah: Yeah, I think that both did a lot to establish ethos in his speech right away.
Joe: He goes on to say, quote “This is not a perfect party. We are not a perfect people.”
This qualifies Jesse Jackson as a relatable “imperfect” person while establishing his
mission as perfect and of the utmost importance.
James: And you’ll notice his use of anaphora in the repetition of the word “perfect”
Elijah: Yeah. I didn’t catch that at first!
James: He also uses zeugma at the end of the section when juxtaposing the human race,
a race of people, and the nuclear race, a literal race to achieve nuclear weapons.
Joe: INTERESTING!! He really knows his stuff.
Fred: Plus, the last bit of this section really implements pathos when reverend Jackson
describes his constituency and how QUOTE “the desperate, the damned, the disinherited,
the disrespected, and the despised” put their faith in him. Such a strong image!
Joe: INTERESTING!! He can truly manipulate the audience’s emotions.
Elijah: Ah! I sense some alliteration!
James: Correct! His alliteration really helps drive his point home
Joe: Now let’s take a look at the next section of Jesse Jackson’s abridged speech.
Section 2
Throughout this campaign, I've tried to offer leadership to the Democratic Party and the
nation. If, in my high moments, I have done some good, offered some service, shed some
light, healed some wounds, rekindled some hope, or stirred someone from apathy and
indifference, or in any way along the way helped somebody, then this campaign has not
been in vain…
If, in my low moments, in word, deed or attitude, through some error of temper, taste, or
tone, I have caused anyone discomfort, created pain, or revived someone's fears, that was
not my truest self. If there were occasions when my grape turned into a raisin and my joy
bell lost its resonance, please forgive me. Charge it to my head and not to my heart. My
head -- so limited in its finitude; my heart, which is boundless in its love for the human
family. I am not a perfect servant. I am a public servant doing my best against the odds.
As I develop and serve, be patient: God is not finished with me yet…
James: Take a look everyone! Jackson used anaphora here again in repeating the word
“some” to tie all of his high moments together.
Joe: Metaphor alert!
Fred: What are you talking about Joe?
Joe: Later on in that section, he makes an important figurative connection. In the middle
of his concession he makes a very effective metaphor comparing himself to a grape and a
joy bell to give imagery to how he believes he may have failed.
James: Good job Joe. You’re really catching onto figurative language. Soon you’ll be
like an expert like me.
Elijah: Also notice at the end, he wraps up this section with another connection to God
by saying QUOTE God is not finished with me yet ENDQUOTE, which is another
powerful use of ethos.
Fred: Absolutely, it shows the people that Rev. Jackson is willing to grow with them in
the name of God.
Joe: Now here’s a look at the next section.
Section 3
America is not like a blanket -- one piece of unbroken cloth, the same color, the same
texture, the same size. America is more like a quilt: many patches, many pieces, many
colors, many sizes, all woven and held together by a common thread. The white, the
Hispanic, the black, the Arab, the Jew, the woman, the native American, the small
farmer, the businessperson, the environmentalist, the peace activist, the young, the old,
the lesbian, the gay, and the disabled make up the American quilt.
Even in our fractured state, all of us count and fit somewhere. We have proven that we
can survive without each other. But we have not proven that we can win and make
progress without each other. We must come together…
Elijah: This section is where he introduces the simile of the blanket, an important simile
when he talks about the varied population of America.
James: He uses anaphora yet again to emphasize the QUOTE “many patches, many
pieces, many sizes” of Americans. He really likes his anaphora doesn’t he?
Joe: Also, by introducing all the different groups so quickly side by side, he sort of
equalizes them in the mind of the audience, making them all seem equally important.
Fred: From what I’ve been hearing, it seems that this section is also where he introduces
his main thesis!!! QUOTE “Even in our fractured state, all of us count and fit somewhere.
We have proven that we can survive without each other. But we have not proven that we
can win and make progress without each other. We must come together”
Elijah: That does definitely sound like his thesis. It encapsulates his message of unity in
trying times.
Joe: And he also incorporates powerful pathos by mentioning all of these different social
groups and our dependence on one another. The idea of a group mentality is very
emotional and inspiring.
James: Shall we move on to the next section?
Fred: Sure I’m indeed so very excited to hear the rest.
Section 4
From Fannie Lou Hamer in Atlantic City in 1964 to the Rainbow Coalition in San
Francisco today; from the Atlantic to the Pacific, we have experienced pain but
progress…
We must heal and expand. The Rainbow Coalition is making room for Arab Americans.
They, too, know the pain and hurt of racial and religious rejection. They must not
continue to be made pariahs. The Rainbow Coalition is making room for Hispanic
Americans who this very night are living under the threat of the Simpson-Mazzoli bill;
and farm workers from Ohio who are fighting the Campbell Soup Company with a
boycott to achieve legitimate workers' rights.
The Rainbow is making room for the Native American, the most exploited people of all, a
people with the greatest moral claim amongst us. We support them as they seek the
restoration of their ancient land and claim amongst us. We support them as they seek the
restoration of land and water rights, as they seek to preserve their ancestral homeland
and the beauty of a land that was once all theirs. They can never receive a fair share for
all they have given us. They must finally have a fair chance to develop their great
resources and to preserve their people and their culture.
The Rainbow Coalition includes Asian Americans, now being killed in our streets --
scapegoats for the failures of corporate, industrial, and economic policies.
The Rainbow is making room for the young Americans. Twenty years ago, our young
people were dying in a war for which they could not even vote. Twenty years later, young
America has the power to stop a war in Central America and the responsibility to vote in
great numbers. Young America must be politically active in 1984. The choice is war or
peace. We must make room for young America.
The Rainbow includes disabled veterans. The color scheme fits in the Rainbow. The
disabled have their handicap revealed and their genius concealed; while the able-bodied
have their genius revealed and their disability concealed. But ultimately, we must judge
people by their values and their contribution. Don't leave anybody out. I would rather
have Roosevelt in a wheelchair than Reagan on a horse.
The Rainbow is making room for small farmers. They have suffered tremendously under
the Reagan regime. They will either receive 90 percent parity or 100 percent charity. We
must address their concerns and make room for them. The Rainbow includes lesbians and
gays. No American citizen ought be denied equal protection from the law…
Joe: I loved this section.
Elijah: How come?
Joe: He uses great ethos when he mentions Fannie Lou Hamer, who was QUOTE an
inspirational figure in the struggle for Civil Rights END QUOTE according to The
Public's Library and Digital Archive on SNCC. She really brings to mind a passionate
image for his voters.
Fred: I am so impassioned right now…
James: ANAPHORA! This is Jackson’s biggest use of anaphora in his entire speech He
uses anaphora here in the repetition of “THE RAINBOW” and “THE RAINBOW
COALITION” to tie together the many groups he supports.
Fred: Wait, slow down for a second there! What exactly is this rainbow coalition?
Elijah: Well, we got our information on this group from rainbowpush.org. The Rainbow
Coalition is the product of an organization founded by Martin Luther King Jr., dedicated
to improving economic conditions of black and minority communities nation wide.
Joe: Ah, INTERESTING.
Fred: He achieves so much in this section. He calls together all of the different minority
groups under his banner.
Elijah: Also I noticed one part in particular, “QUOTE The choice is war or peace
ENDQUOTE” He’s making his voters choose the side of peace, the side he is on, or the
side of war, the side he is against. This creates a false dichotomy in which the voter is
inclined to choose him and all of his message because it’s the side of “peace”
Fred: Good Point! I didn’t notice that at first. I wondered why I so blindly loved he was
saying.
James: Well hooligans, my favorite part was the antimetabole he uses in describing the
handicapped. QUOTE The disabled have their handicap revealed and their genius
concealed; while the able bodied have their genius revealed and their disability
concealed. ENDQUOTE It was Quite poetic and really captures an important sentiment
for the handicapped community.
Joe: Also, he really highlights this by using an example of Roosevelt in a wheelchair
versus Reagan on a horse.
Fred: Now let’s listen to the next section after a word from out sponsors.
Elijah: We have no sponsors…
Fred: Oh. Well onto the next section then!
Section 5
As I leave you now, we vote in this convention and get ready to go back across this nation
in a couple of days. In this campaign, I've tried to be faithful to my promise. I lived in old
barrios, ghettos, and reservations and housing projects. I have a message for our youth. I
challenge them to put hope in their brains and not dope in their veins. I told them that
like Jesus, I, too, was born in the slum. But just because you're born in the slum does not
mean the slum is born in you, and you can rise above it if your mind is made up. I told
them in every slum there are two sides. When I see a broken window -- that's the slummy
side. Train some youth to become a glazier -- that's the sunny side. When I see a missing
brick -- that's the slummy side. Let that child in the union and become a brick mason and
build -- that's the sunny side. When I see a missing door -- that's the slummy side. Train
some youth to become a carpenter -- that's the sunny side. And when I see the vulgar
words and hieroglyphics of destitution on the walls -- that's the slummy side. Train some
youth to become a painter, an artist -- that's the sunny side.
Joe: He opens this section once again with ethos by saying QUOTE “I’ve tried to be
faithful to my promise. I lived in old barrios, ghettos, and reservations and housing
projects.” END QUOTE He shows the American people that he has suffered and
struggled in life just like many others.
Fred: I actually think this could be the climax of his entire speech; you know, when he
said that “I am like Jesus, I am born in the slum…”
Elijah: Really? That’s a big deal if it is…
Fred: This is where he draws the strongest connection to god and obviously the strongest
ethos, logos, and pathos. He draws a moral and ethical persona of himself and connects
himself to God.
Joe: It’s like saying, “Yes I’m a politician and I’m going to hold the highest position of
office; Yet, I’m not going to be the Almighty, the typical type of president. I’m going to
be like Jesus, the humbled form of the higher up who can relate to the people’s
problems.”
James: If you listen closely, you’ll hear another antimetabole right after when he brings
up the slums saying QUOTE But just because you’re born in the slum does not mean the
slum is born in you. END QUOTE And as he continues talking about the slum he uses-
Elijah: ANAPHORA! Right?
James: That’s right, he definitely uses a TON of parallel structure in this section.
Fred: I think it was really great how he addressed the youth, a critical section of his
voters.
Elijah: Ok gang! Let’s get to the last section.
Section 6
Young America, dream. Choose the human race over the nuclear race. Bury the weapons
and don't burn the people. Dream -- dream of a new value system. Teachers who teach
for life and not just for a living; teach because they can't help it. Dream of lawyers more
concerned about justice than a judgeship. Dream of doctors more concerned about
public health than personal wealth. Dream of preachers and priests who will prophesy
and not just profiteer. Preach and dream!
Our time has come. Our time has come. Suffering breeds character. Character breeds
faith. In the end, faith will not disappoint. Our time has come. Our faith, hope, and
dreams will prevail. Our time has come. Weeping has endured for nights, but now joy
cometh in the morning. Our time has come. No grave can hold our body down. Our time
has come. No lie can live forever. Our time has come. We must leave racial battle ground
and come to economic common ground and moral higher ground. America, our time has
come. We come from disgrace to amazing grace. Our time has come. Give me your tired,
give me your poor, your huddled masses who yearn to breathe free and come November,
there will be a change because our time has come.
Fred: (crying) THAT WAS SO MOVING!
Elijah: Ok, while we give Fred a moment to pull himself together, lets dig into this
extraordinary section of rhetoric here.
James: He uses the same zeugma once again when he says QUOTE Choose the human
race over the nuclear race. He seems rather fond of that line. Did you guys happen to
catch the alliteration and anaphora as well?
Fred: Yeah, he-
Joe: Fred! You’re better now.
Fred: Yeah. Well back to with what I was saying, he repeats the word DREAM in
consecutive sentences.
Elijah: And uses both alliteration and rhyme when he says QUOTE Dream of doctors
more concerned about public health than personal wealth. ENDQUOTE
Joe: He also alliterates in the sentence after that! “preachers, priests, prophesy, and
profiteer.”
James: Good job guys. You are becoming expert rhetoric analyzers, like me! But you
guys failed to notice one of the most significant examples of his use of rhetorical
techniques. OUR TIME HAS COME. OUR TIME HAS COME. He repeats this phrase
over and over again implementing his favorite device, anaphora.
Fred: I loved that part! It emphasizes the group mentality and coming together; it calls
the nation forward and indirectly pushes them to vote for him. Together, all of those
things use a very strong pathos to bring the listeners together.
James: Most of his syntax emphasized transition, like QUOTE Weeping has endured…
but now joy cometh ENDQUOTE.
Elijah: I also happened to notice that the ending had a lot of references and allusions.
His first one was a biblical reference. In the line that James mentioned, he makes a
reference to Psalm 30:5. It reminds everyone that he is a pastor while the imagery of the
night and the morning inspire hope for the future.
Joe: I noticed a reference too. There was a reference to Martin Luther King Jr. when he
said QUOTE No lie can live forever END QUOTE, a statement in Maritn Luther king
Jr’s Give Us the Ballot," Address.
Fred: Now that you mention it…there have been a whole lot of references to Martin
Luther King Jr. throughout Jackson’s speech. That makes sense because it’s very
important for him to tie himself to Martin Luther King Jr. because King is considered the
epitome of civil rights advocates; that was an effective use of ethos.
James: The repetition of the word “Dream” that we mentioned earlier also supports this
connection.
Conclusion
Joe: So now that you’ve heard the entire speech Fred, what did you think about it?
Fred: Well, I really felt drawn in to…drawn into the mentality of the Rainbow
Coalition…
Elijah: I really felt like he was creating a group mentality. He really used pathos to tug at
the hearts of all the groups of people whom he mentioned.
Joe: And by the end he took all the separate pieces, and made it into his Rainbow- made
it into his Democratic Party that would take this country forward and against
Reaganomics.
Fred: Yeah as a pastor, the ethos that he used mainly came from his religious affiliations.
Yet at the same time, he mentioned a lot of non-Christian groups such as Arabs, and
Native Americans.
James: For syntax, a lot of his statements were short sentences, which makes use of an
important political strategy. People will remember his passionate statements like “Our
time has come.” His diction highlighted the contrast between the “slummy” state of the
country and his hopeful goals. It also supports his unifying and optimistic tone.
Joe: Wow, that was a mouthful. But I certainly agree with you. It all came together to
support Jackson’s central message that anyone listening could be a part of his movement
with the Democratic Party.
Fred: Most importantly though, we have to remember that his purpose was simply to get
people to vote for him.
Joe: But what’s the significance behind this?
Elijah: Based on historical happenings, I firmly believe that Jackson’s civil rights
platform will not get him the candidacy.
Joe: Really? Wow, I guess you can’t run for office on a completely civil rights or
humanitarian platform.
Elijah: Well… Let me put it this way…It’s inspiring. It’s rooted in ethics. But in the
whole, it’s not necessarily logical because it doesn’t express the candidate’s ability to run
the country. Reagan is outlining a more conservative and politically rooted campaign, and
thus may be a more suitable president.
James: I agree. If hypothetically, in 2010, the country had its first African American
President, he would have had to emphasize his political aptness to show that he is a good
political leader as well as a step forward for civil rights.
Fred: How perceptive. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
Joe: That we will because that’s all the time we have for today.
Elijah: Tune in next time to the-
All: THE ROYGIBIVS!
-music-
Works Cited
"1984 Democratic National Convention." The Political Graveyard. N.p., n.d. Web. 31
Jan. 2011. .
"Brief History | Rainbow PUSH Coalition." Rainbow PUSH Coalition. N.p., n.d. Web. 31
Jan. 2011. .
"Fannie Lou Hamer ." ibiblio - The Public's Library and Digital Archive. N.p., n.d. Web.
31 Jan. 2011. .
"Jesse Jackson ." Library ThinkQuest. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Jan. 2011.
.
"Jesse Jackson Biography - life, childhood, children, wife, school, young, son, old,
information, born, college, house, time, year." Encyclopedia of World Biography.
N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Jan. 2011. .
Beatles, The. “Come Together”. Abbey Road. Apple. 1969
Link to original speech:
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/jessejackson1984dnc.htm
He obviously wanted to paint himself as a foil and establish a persona that
contrasts what Reagan has done for the past four years. Umm Reagan was a
wealthy, (lets be real), white actor, who rose easily to power who rose easily
to power who established a doctrine established a very conservative doctrine
that supported the rich and the powerful. And the majority of Jackson’s
speech serves to create his own persona as a slum-born man who could
relate to the common man- who could relate to the problems and the issues
of small communities and individual races or um groups of people-
especially the poor and the meek. Mainly, his policies and his platform
which were obviously umm most prominent in his (because that’s another
purpose of his speech- to relate his platform and his policies) ---and he
makes himself more as a champion; he can take of his credibility as a social
activist leader and parallel it with his incredibility as a minority leader;
underlying parallel as a minority Democrats and minority among people.
Very good point. --- mainly his policies and his platforms included nothing
about nitty gritty government workings such as economic regulations,
budget. It had nothing to do with the higher ups of government. He did not
want to seem like a politician. He wanted to seme like a person who
understood and knew well the problems of the people- not the problems of
economics and the government. He didn’t talk about constitutional rights
which was surprising. Umm ok..
In terms of logos along with the ethos, it’s the logical connection between,
being born in a slum. He names all of the different slums from different
ethnicities.
The underlining, and main logos is the only way we can do this is by coming
together. Obviously this is all for the people to vote for him. But the logos
that the people see, is that we can alleviate all the problems by starting from
the bottom up. Um a very interesting foil between Reagan and Jackson,
again establishing Jackson’s persona as entirely different from Reagan. My
point is that Jackson works from the bottom up, he starts as close down from
the people. Works up through his speech, starting from the bottom, to the
end to form a cohesive mentality for his country and moving along together.
Whereas Reagan, began the trickle down. He definitely had a trickled down-
focused on the higher up of things. While Jackson focused on the individual
problems- from the people. And when youre running against a incumbent
who was relatively popular, that’s pretty much all you can do. Is contrast
him. Because if you’re against him, you show that there is something
different from something that’s already there. Its like the only way to get
elected against an incumbent.
Paralleling Martin Luther King Jr. throughout this entire speech, bringing up
the essence of Martin Luther King Jr.