A senior in high school is calling for former President Barack Obama to do something unique for the class of 2020. A commencement speech delivered virtually, in honor of those who can’t graduate from school thanks to canceled ceremonies.
17-year-old Lincoln Debenham, a senior from Eagle Rock High School in Los Angeles, sent out a tweet late Tuesday night asking Obama to deliver a “national commencement address” via video conferencing.
The hope is that the virtual address can replace school ceremonies while the public is staying at home thanks to the coronavirus pandemic.
In his tweet, Lincoln said:
“Like most high school/college seniors, I’m saddened by the loss of milestone events, prom & graduation. In an unprecedented time, it would give us great comfort to hear your voice. We ask you to consider giving a national commencement speech to the class of 2020.”
Hi @BarackObama! Like most high school/college seniors, I’m saddened by the loss of milestone events, prom & graduation. In an unprecedented time, it would give us great comfort to hear your voice. We ask you to consider giving a national commencement speech to the class of 2020.
— Lincoln (@lincolnjackd) April 15, 2020
As of Thursday morning, the tweet has already received more than 155,000 likes and more than 32,000 retweets.
A spokeswoman for Obama, Katie Hill, said that they are “very flattered” by the tweet. However, they declined to comment further at this time.
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Speaking with CNN, Denham explained his reason for posting his tweet. He said that it was after Obama endorsed Joe Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination that he decided to take action.
Working with his older brother Eli, they devised the perfect tweet. They wanted to make sure that it conveyed the right kind of message they wanted to send to Obama.
“We all at some point felt bad about feeling bad about missing our graduation,” said Debenham. “People are dying, people are getting really sick, losing their jobs. I think a lot of us realized it’s OK to feel bad as long as you don’t minimize the struggles of others.”
Debenham also expressed how he feels that Obama represents an icon to his generation and the 2020 graduation class.
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“They got to vote for Barack Obama in mock elections when they were little kids and they got to watch Barack Obama become the first black president and get sworn in while they were in school,” he said.
“I remember watching that in the classroom and feeling kind of amazed at such a young age and feel like I was a part of history.”
“It’s about someone who speaks for my generation,” he continued. “That’s what this is about. Hearing that voice of hope again.”
