The Speech.
For this year’s State of the Union address, President Obama focused heavily on the needs of the middle class, stressing policy changes that needed to be made in order for the average American to actually be able to achieve financial security. The President stressed that childcare is a majorly overlooked need for most citizens. According to the White House, 71% of children in the United States are either raised by a single parent or two working parents.
President Obama also reiterated his plan to make community college free, emphasizing the need for more skilled laborers in the United States. Jobs, particularly job creation, equal pay for women and men, and higher wages overall, were also a major focus of the address. The President dedicated a significant portion of the speech to the importance of protecting the environment, particularly in terms of climate change. Obama also made a bit of history, by being the first President to speak the words “Instagram,” “lesbian,” “bisexual,” and “transgender” in a State of the Union Address. And, at one point, Obama delivered the best line of the evening:
What was missing.
The president only made a passing mention of Ferguson on the ongoing conversations about racial discrimination and police brutality, presenting the problem as the inverse to assaults committed on cops, rather than its own issue.
The Memes.
Meet Dr. Ernest Moniz, the United States Secretary of Energy.
When you travel to the future from 1776 just to confirm that a black man is president #SOTU pic.twitter.com/imDtdvXikn
— Code Architect (@codeArchie) January 21, 2015
LMAO RT @CLSmooth97: RT @the_Jameson: #SOTU (h/t @mc_1986 for idea) pic.twitter.com/ndQ8amoEZF
— Daniel José Older (@djolder) January 21, 2015
Don't do this! LOL RT "@ElishaKrauss Same hair? Energy secretary and Quaker oats man… #SOTU pic.twitter.com/EaLAnOfwyK"
— BlackGirlNerds (@BlackGirlNerds) January 21, 2015
The Fashion.
The White House threatened the return of the infamous tan suit,
President Obama's suiting up for the big speech. Watch at 9pm ET → http://t.co/NKU3ndKHOu #YesWeTan pic.twitter.com/l7EJZYVk9s
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 21, 2015
But instead we were treated to First Lady Michelle Obama rocking a fabulous tweed suit from Michael Kors Fall 2013 collection. The jacket is officially sold out everywhere, sorry.
In Conclusion.
Overall the address was well received, even scoring high marks in real-time polls. But, like the speeches that the President has delivered in the past, he failed to full acknowledge many of the great disparities that still exist in the United States, especially for African-Americans.
In case you missed it, watch the entire speech.