and as I end my time in the White House I can think of no better message to send to our young people in my last official remarks this first lady so for all the young people in this room and those who are watching know that this country belongs to you to all of you from every background and Walk of Life if you or your parents are immigrants know that you are part of a proud American tradition the infusion of new cultures talents and ideas generation after generation that has made us the greatest country on Earth
if your family doesn't have much money I want you to remember that in this country plenty of folks including me and my husband we started out with very little but with a lot of hard work and a good education Anything is Possible even becoming president that's what the American dream is all about and if you are a person of faith know that religious diversity is a great American tradition too in fact that's why people first came to this country to worship freely and whether you are Muslim Christian Jewish Hindu Sikh these religions are teaching our
young people about Justice and compassion and honesty so I want our young people to continue to learn and practice those values with pride you see our glorious diversity our diversity is a faiths and colors and Creeds that is not a threat to who we are it makes us who we are so the young people here and the young people out there do not ever let anyone make you feel like you don't matter or like you don't have a place in our American story because you do and you have a right to be exactly who you
are but I also want to be very clear this right isn't just handed to you know this right has to be earned every single day you cannot take your freedoms for granted now just like Generations who've come before you you have to do your part to preserve and protect those freedoms and that starts right now when you're young right now you need to be preparing yourself to add your voice to our national conversation you need to prepare yourself to be informed and engaged as a citizen to serve and to lead to stand up for our
proud American values and to honor them in your daily lives and that means getting the best education possible so you can think critically so you can express yourself clearly so you can get a good job and support yourself and your family so you can be a positive force in your communities and when you encounter obstacles because I guarantee you you will and many of you already have when you are struggling and you start thinking about giving up I want you to remember something that my husband and I have talked about since we first started this
journey nearly a decade ago something that has carried us through every moment in this White House in every moment of Our Lives and that is the power of Hope the belief that something better is always possible if you're willing to work for it and fight for it it is our fundamental belief in the power of hope that has allowed us to rise above the voices of doubt and Division of anger and fear that we have faced in our own lives and in the life of this country our hope that if we work hard enough and
believe in ourselves then we can be whatever we dream regardless of the limitations That Others May place on us the hope that when people see us for who we truly are maybe just maybe they too will be inspired to rise to their best possible selves that is the hope of students like Kyra who fight to discover their gifts and share them with the world it's the hope of school counselors like Terry and all these folks up here who who guide those students every step of the way refusing to give up on even a single young
person shoot it's the hope of my folks like my dad got up every day do his job at the city water plant the hope that one day his kids would go to college and have opportunities he never dreamed of that's the kind of hope that every single one of us politicians parents preachers all of us need to be providing for our young people because that is what moves this country forward every single day Our Hope for the future and the hard work that hope inspires so that's my final message to young people that's first lady
it is simple thank you I want our young people to know that they matter that they belong so don't be afraid you hear me young people don't be afraid be focused be determined be hopeful be empowered Empower yourselves with a good education then get out there and use that education to build a country worthy of your boundless promise lead by example with hope never fear and know that I will be with you rooting for you and working to support you for the rest of my life and that is true I know for every person who
are here is here today and for educators and Advocates all across this nation who get up every day and work their hearts out to lift up our young people and I am so grateful to all of you for your passion and your dedication and all the hard work on behalf of our next generation and I can think of no better way to end my time as first lady than celebrating with all of you so I want to close today by simply saying thank you thank you for everything you do for our kids and for our
country being your first lady has been the greatest honor of my life and I hope I've made you proud [Applause]
