In the final days of the 2026 election, we were hearing the voice that made us feel so good leading up to his 2008 election. Most of us first heard him at a Democratic National Convention. His speech led him to victory as our president soon afterward. It sparked my interest! I immediately signed up to be on his team and work for his election. I’ve had no regrets! Once he introduced himself to the nation, he became a sensation, and he’s been helping others ever since. He just pulled the campaigns of others up a few notches. He made us laugh when we were nervous. His messages were about serving the people. He emphasized respect for others. He still inspires people of all races, creeds and colors.
Throughout his campaign and in his recent closing remarks for others, he made us feel HOPE again! We were energized every time we heard him. During his campaign, an elderly Black woman taught us to become FIRED UP, and he brings that energy back to us every time we hear him near the close of recent campaigns. Because of his energy and brilliance, we were lifted up when others directed ugliness at candidates who didn’t deserve what too many people were bringing to recent campaigns. I saw his greatness early, when he ran, and gave him an early nod. Campaigning for him was easy. When the campaign began to look like VICTORY, we adopted Stevie Wonder’s song “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” because we could feel the victory every time our candidate spoke! Our enthusiasm never waned. Just as he campaigned for others recently, he brought that same energy and hope he had when he campaigned for president.
I’ll never forget his own campaign to become president. As my good friend Amy Billingsley and I campaigned, we never had a negative encounter wherever we visited. It appeared that most people were just waiting for someone from the campaign to let us know how excited they were about the possibility of having a young, enthusiastic, handsome and brilliant president with the funny name!
Amy and I were blessed to meet our soon-to-be first lady, Michelle Obama, who agreed to be our speaker for a big event shortly after the election. Michelle chatted with us like we were old friends. At the time, I was working to get the statue of Sojourner Truth in the Capitol, making her the first Black woman to have a statue there. Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm and Dr. C. Delores Tucker had preceded me as leaders of the National Congress of Black Women, and because of their work, I was selected to carry on the project. Dr. Tucker had chosen me to lead the organization before her transition. Shirley was my Delta Sigma Theta sister, and she’d already inspired me to do many things. She was one of my key supporters when I ran for the U.S. Congress. Dr. Tucker came to Louisiana, where I was a candidate, to assist me with campaigning. I’d been one of Congresswoman Chisholm’s campaign leaders in Georgia when she ran for U.S. president. They provided tall shoulders for my race for U.S. Congress. I came very close to victory, but after a mysterious computer breakdown, I came up a bit short. The experience prepared me to work on Barack’s team.
Once we were celebrating our accomplishment of electing the first Black U.S. president, we still knew he was one of the smartest men many of us had ever known. He didn’t disappoint while in office, and he continues to help others win races to serve! I’m still pleased to have served as a member of the President’s Scholars Commission!
After serving two terms, President Obama has still got it, and he worked his magic to help elect other talented, honest, energetic people to serve our nation — just when we need them most!
Williams is president of The Dick Gregory Society (www.thedickgregorysociety.org).
