The Dream Begins: How Hawaii Shaped Barack Obama

by Glauberman, Stu

• ISBN13: 9780981508689
• ISBN10: 0981508685
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-09-01
• Publisher: Watermark Pub

Summary

Born and raised in the most multicultural state in the union, United States presidential candidate Barack Obama bears the indelible stamp of his native Hawai'i. Here is a coming-of-age story set in Hawai'i¿s storied ¿melting pot¿¿a revealing look at what makes Obama tick. The social mores of the Aloha State and the experience of growing up in an island culture have had a deep and lasting influence on the candidate. Obama himself has noted, ¿What¿s best in me, and what¿s best in my message, is consistent with the tradition of Hawai'i.¿ Glauberman and Burris offer concise lessons in Hawai'i history to help the reader understand its racial and social climate, and how such an environment could impact a young man like Obama. For, as his wife, Michelle Obama, has said, ¿You can¿t really understand Barack until you understand Hawai'i.¿ Interviews with Obama¿s Punahou School classmates and teachers, as well as others who knew the Senator in his youth, add a personal dimension to the narrative. Obama¿s paternal and maternal family history and his years in Indonesia are also thoroughly covered.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. vi
Stepping onto a World Stage	p. 1
Starting School in Honolulu	p. 7
Hawai'i in the Time of Statehood	p. 15
A Woman from America, a Man from Africa	p. 29
Indonesia's Unity in Diversity	p. 45
Barry Meets His Father	p. 57
Choosing between Black and White	p. 65
Hawai'i in the '70s	p. 73
Punahou School, Microcosm of Hawai'i	p. 83
Barry O'Bomber, Reserve Forward	p. 91
Turbulent Times in High School	p. 97
Hawai'i's Multicultural Milieu	p. 107
The Lessons of Hawai'i	p. 117
The Campaign Seen from Hawai'i	p. 123
Epilogue	p. 129
Sources	p. 135
Index	p. 142
Acknowledgments	p. 143
About the Authors	p. 144
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