It was a mini family reunion for President Barack Obama as he made his first presidential visit to Nairobi, Kenya, where his father was born. The leader of the free world was greeted by his half-sister, Auma Obama, at Jomo Kenyatta Airport, along with the country's President Uhuru Kenyatta and other Kenyan officials.
According to CNN, after his arrival, Obama dined with other members of his family, including his step-grandmother and other family members. Auma Obama spoke highly of her famous sibling with CNN's Brooke Baldwin: "I love my brother. What can I say?," she said. "I mean, it's interesting that we met quite late in life. We hit it off — and yeah — he's my brother — that's why we don't do the half thing."
| FAMOUS SIBLINGS SHARING THE SPOTLIGHT |
The siblings first met in Chicago when they were both in their 20s after the President invited her to the United States in a letter. President Obama isn't the only one who has gone on to make the Obama name proud. Auma went on to build a Kenya-based foundation, Sauti Kuu, from the ground up, to help bring disadvantaged children out of poverty.
"I'm proud of our name because my brother really has carried our name up there," she said. "It's made our mark in the world... It tells every child that if you work hard, you can do whatever you want in this world. You can make your future. So, what I'm trying to do here, he has done."
Obama is the first sitting president to visit the African nation.
Aside from his familial bonding, President Obama visited Kenya to participate in a joint news conference with President Kenyatta. Huffington Post reports that when the topic of gay rights was introduced, Obama voiced his strong support. However, Kenyatta called it a "non-issue," stating that it is not a priority concern in the nation. The Kenyan pesident went on to say that though the U.S. and Kenya agree on several issues that plague nations around the globe, there are some things that they cannot see eye-to-eye on, with equal rights being one of them. He says their government wants to focus elsewhere on "more pressing issues" such as terrorism."
Gay s*x is currently deemed a crime in Kenya and is punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to legalize LGBT marriage throughout the United States was announced, there has been some pushback from nations regarding the issue. Is the importance of this topic relative to the territory where it is being addressed? Let us know what you think.
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http://www.bet.com/news/politics/2015/07/25/president-obama-reunites-with-half-sister-in-kenya.html?cid=sailthrunews
Posted By: Jeni Fa
Friday, July 31st 2015 at 5:43PM
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