Albany, NY – In response to President Barack Obama’s farewell speech, Karen Scharff, Executive Director of Citizen Action of New York, said:
“After eight years of service to our country, Barack Obama, the nation’s first black president gave a farewell address that reminded us why we fell for the community organizer who talked about hope. After two terms full of political battles, and one of the greatest election upsets of our time, President Obama is the same optimist that dazzled the country during the 2004 Democratic National Convention.
“However, for all of the talk about hope and reflection, this farewell address, more than anything, was a call to action. Now more than ever, we must be prepared to fight for what will truly make this country great. On January 20, Donald Trump will be sworn in as the next president of the United States, and his government of billionaires plans to go after much of what President Obama has done to strengthen the middle class and reduce poverty, starting with health care. The Affordable Care Act has not only expanded access to affordable health insurance, it has empowered and protected people with pre-existing conditions from the insurance industry’s shady practices, and helped eliminate poverty as a barrier to good health care. We will be following the President’s call to action and fight to protect the ACA, Medicaid, and Medicare.
“The best way to honor President Obama is to fight against any attempt to reverse the progress we made have made, while also organizing to push the country further ahead. That means universal affordable quality health insurance, a living wage, automatic voter registration, paid family leave, publicly financed elections, a fully funded education system and much more. Change is inevitable, but it shouldn’t be guided by what happens in D.C. – it must start with us.”
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