Focusing on the Future

After 40 years in government, Joe Biden is well-known for giving speeches in front of big groups. But as a kid, he dreaded talking in public. Biden has a stutter, a speech disorder that causes him to repeat sounds at the beginning of words.

School was tough for Biden. His classmates—and even a teacher—made fun of him. But he says his mother always encouraged him, saying, “Joey, don’t let this define you. Joey, you can do it.”

Then a teacher taught Biden some techniques to help control his stutter, like reciting poetry in front of a mirror. Biden still stutters from time to time, but he doesn’t let it stop him.

“The measure of a man isn’t how often he is knocked down, but how quickly he gets up,” Biden has said.

After 40 years in government, Joe Biden is well-known for giving speeches in front of big groups. But as a kid, he dreaded talking in public. Biden has a stutter, a speech disorder that causes him to repeat sounds at the beginning of words.

School was tough for Biden. His classmates—and even a teacher—made fun of him. But he says his mother always encouraged him, saying, “Joey, don’t let this define you. Joey, you can do it.”

Then a teacher taught Biden some techniques to help control his stutter, like reciting poetry in front of a mirror. Biden still stutters from time to time, but he doesn’t let it stop him.

“The measure of a man isn’t how often he is knocked down, but how quickly he gets up,” Biden has said.

Growing up in Berkeley, California, Kamala Harris sometimes faced discrimination. Harris is the child of immigrants. Her mother was a cancer researcher who was born in India. Her father was a professor from the island nation of Jamaica. She recalls that one of her neighbors wasn’t allowed to play with Harris and her sister, Maya, because they were Black.

In 1970, when Harris was in first grade, she was bused to a mostly white school miles from home. She was part of one of the first groups of students to integrate Berkeley’s public schools. Harris remembers a saying that her mother often told her: “Kamala, you may be the first to do many things, but make sure you’re not the last.”

Growing up in Berkeley, California, Kamala Harris sometimes faced discrimination. Harris is the child of immigrants. Her mother was a cancer researcher who was born in India. Her father was a professor from the island nation of Jamaica. She recalls that one of her neighbors wasn’t allowed to play with Harris and her sister, Maya, because they were Black.

In 1970, when Harris was in first grade, she was bused to a mostly white school miles from home. She was part of one of the first groups of students to integrate Berkeley’s public schools. Harris remembers a saying that her mother often told her: “Kamala, you may be the first to do many things, but make sure you’re not the last.”

After 40 years in government, Joe Biden is well-known for giving speeches in front of big groups. But as a kid, he dreaded talking in public. Biden has a stutter, a speech disorder that causes him to repeat sounds at the beginning of words.

School was tough for Biden. His classmates—and even a teacher—made fun of him. But he says his mother always encouraged him, saying, “Joey, don’t let this define you. Joey, you can do it.”

Then a teacher taught Biden some techniques to help control his stutter, like reciting poetry in front of a mirror. Biden still stutters from time to time, but he doesn’t let it stop him.

“The measure of a man isn’t how often he is knocked down, but how quickly he gets up,” Biden has said.

After 40 years in government, Joe Biden is well-known for giving speeches in front of big groups. But as a kid, he dreaded talking in public. Biden has a stutter, a speech disorder that causes him to repeat sounds at the beginning of words.

School was tough for Biden. His classmates—and even a teacher—made fun of him. But he says his mother always encouraged him, saying, “Joey, don’t let this define you. Joey, you can do it.”

Then a teacher taught Biden some techniques to help control his stutter, like reciting poetry in front of a mirror. Biden still stutters from time to time, but he doesn’t let it stop him.

“The measure of a man isn’t how often he is knocked down, but how quickly he gets up,” Biden has said.

Growing up in Berkeley, California, Kamala Harris sometimes faced discrimination. Harris is the child of immigrants. Her mother was a cancer researcher who was born in India. Her father was a professor from the island nation of Jamaica. She recalls that one of her neighbors wasn’t allowed to play with Harris and her sister, Maya, because they were Black.

In 1970, when Harris was in first grade, she was bused to a mostly white school miles from home. She was part of one of the first groups of students to integrate Berkeley’s public schools. Harris remembers a saying that her mother often told her: “Kamala, you may be the first to do many things, but make sure you’re not the last.”

Growing up in Berkeley, California, Kamala Harris sometimes faced discrimination. Harris is the child of immigrants. Her mother was a cancer researcher who was born in India. Her father was a professor from the island nation of Jamaica. She recalls that one of her neighbors wasn’t allowed to play with Harris and her sister, Maya, because they were Black.

In 1970, when Harris was in first grade, she was bused to a mostly white school miles from home. She was part of one of the first groups of students to integrate Berkeley’s public schools. Harris remembers a saying that her mother often told her: “Kamala, you may be the first to do many things, but make sure you’re not the last.”