The Presidential Trail of Barack Obama

19 January 2009

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Barack Obama has made world-wide history. Elected as America’s first African-American President, Obama’s inauguration takes place tomorrow, and promises to draw crowds from all over the world to witness this global event.

Obama’s policies and beliefs have developed from much of his own life experiences, from being raised by his single mother in Indonesia to working as a community organizer in Chicago, and his family life with wife Michelle and his two daughters are also influential of his political decisions.

FemaleFirst takes a look at the places and cities which have shaped Obama’s life so far, including his parents’ meeting at the University of Hawaii, his political career in New York, his love of the Chicago White Sox baseball team, and the move into his new home at the White House in Washington DC.

Kenya

Obama’s African heritage comes from his father, Barack Obama senior, who was raised in a village in Kenya, East Africa. The family was relatively poor, and Obama’s father spent his youth herding goats to make a living.

Nowadays, Kenya remains proud of its history and wildlife, and its vast landscapes hold host to a number of lions, rhinos, zebras, giraffes and cheetahs. For this reason, Kenya is described as one of Africa’s predominant safari destinations.

To demonstrate Kenya’s concern for the conservation of wildlife, the country has many community projects to protect the well-being of particular animals, such as the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife Giraffe Centre, which is located in Langata, near Kenya’s capital city of Nairobi, and the Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage near Nairobi National Park.

The outbacks of Kenya offer more than secluded landscapes though, and climbers often visit Mount Kenya to attempt reaching its famous peak, while the Tana River is a hot spot for white water rafting.

Features such as this attract visitors from all over the world, and tourism has steadily grown following the bomb attacks of Mombasa in 2002.

In contrast to this traditional Kenyan way of life, Nairobi has progressed into a modern city, with an array of shops, markets and a busy nightlife. But unemployment and poverty is still relatively high in other areas of the country.

Kenya is also a main player on the international drug stage, and it has been reported that Mombasa’s sea port is a haven for heroin dealers.

Barack Obama senior didn’t plan to stay in Kenya for all of his life, and moved to Hawaii after winning a scholarship at the University of Hawaii. He was the school’s first African student, and whilst there, he met Obama’s mother, Ann Dunham.

Kansas

Obama’s American heritage derives from his mother, Ann Dunham, who was raised in Wichita, Kansas, in the central region of the United States.

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