Your election – eight years ago - signaled a new round of prosperity and hope, not only for American citizens, but also for a major part of the world. You managed to get your country out of recession, you established Obamacare, you reached a deal with Iran, you protected minorities, you declared tolerance. You inspired many of us.
Dear Barack Obama
In your book, “The Audacity of Hope”, published ten years ago, you were wondering “whether men and women in fact are capable of learning from history - whether we progress from one stage to the next in an upward course or whether we just ride the cycles of boom and bust, war and peace, ascent and decline”.
Your election – eight years ago - signaled a new round of prosperity and hope, not only for American citizens, but also for a major part of the world. You managed to get your country out of recession, you established Obamacare, you reached a deal with Iran, you protected minorities, you declared tolerance. You inspired many of us. I am referring to all those citizens and politicians, who believe that there can be another kind of politics too. You inspired those who believe that, instead of dragging ourselves to old paths, we can follow new ones. We can have rivers, instead of swamp waters.
And just as we thought that Americans realized all these, the elections that took place on 8 November, proved us wrong. Populism won once again. This means that a big part of your valuable heritage is at stake. It is at risk. The future of the global deal on climate is a major concern for us. We are worried about the deficient approach of the new President towards Europe. We are terrified by the idea of walls and discrimination, based on religion, race, ideas and economic criteria.
In his wonderful song “Fragile”, Still sings: “How fragile we are…On and on, the rain will fall…Like tears from a star”. We are fragile. We often refuse to learn from history. Demagogues and terrorists take advantage of this, just like the incompetent, arrogant and ruthless do. Yet, they will not make it. We know it. There can be another way too and this has been proved by your eight years in power.
I am quoting your words (from your speech, in the beginning of 2016). “The future we want -- all of us want -- opportunity and security for our families, a rising standard of living, a sustainable, peaceful planet for our kids -- all that is within our reach. But it will only happen if we work together. It will only happen if we can have rational, constructive debates”.
Therefore, we will insist, hoping that the small and big mistakes of history will not be repeated.
Thank you
Stavros Theodorakis, Leader of the Political Party To Potami
