John next to a cardboard
cut-out of President Obama. |
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Barack Obama's Life- by John
On August 4, 1961 Barack Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. His mom was from Kansas, and his dad was from Kenya. Barack's parents got a divorce when he was young. When Barack was six he moved with his mother and new stepfather to Jakarta, Indonesia. After four years in Indonesia his mother sent him back to Hawaii to attend a private school. He lived with his grandparents. He played basketball in high school. After he graduated he started off at Occidental College then transferred to Columbia University. After college, in 1985, Barack took a job as a community organizer in Chicago. At first the people did not believe in him, but when they saw how much work he got done they started to believe.
After three years in Chicago he decided he wanted to be a lawyer. He chose Harvard University because that was the same school his father went to. Before he went to Harvard he took a trip to Kenya to meet his father's side of the family. During the next month in Kenya he met his grandmother and various other family members. He learned that his father had a high-level government job.
In the fall of 1988 he entered Harvard Law School. Obama made the Harvard Law Review in his first year. By his second year he became the president of it. He was the first African American to earn the job.
When Barack graduated from law school, he really wanted to help people.
He met his wife, Michelle, at a law firm in Chicago. In 1996 he ran for state Senator in Illinois. He later ran for U.S. House of Representatives, but he lost. In 2003 he ran for the U.S. Senate and he won. Then in 2004 during the Democratic Convention, he gave a speech that elevated him to the national spotlight. After people heard this speech they felt that he should run for President. In 2007 Barack Obama announced that he would run for President. On November 4, 2008 he won! |
