Last night President Obama referred to his first nationally-televised speech at the Democratic convention in Boston in 2004.  My mom was a Kerry delegate from Ohio and was there when he spoke.  She kept a diary of the convention and here’s what she recorded twelve years ago last night.

By cell phone Dad and I decided to exit, the time being now 10:20 and we wanted to get back to our room so we could watch the coverage of Barack Obama. As it turned out we watched him on one of the TV monitors in the hallway near the concession stands at the arena. A crowd of people about 10 deep gathered around the set. His message was “E Pluribus Unum . . .we are ONE nation, not red and blue states or one religion or another or gay or straight.” There’s no doubt that he’s a star. Sadly, a black woman who was on the escalator toward the exit of the building at the same time we were, muttered, “He’s wonderful, but I hope they don’t destroy him…”

Not to worry.  They tried, but he prevailed.