Dreams from My Father

by

Barack Obama

Regina is a Black student whom Barack meets at Occidental College. She’s a few years older and beautiful; she wears homemade dresses and tinted glasses. Regina is the first person Barack meets at college who makes him feel like he doesn’t have to hide who he is, and she’s the first person who calls him Barack instead of Barry. They become close and Regina tells him a lot about her upbringing in Chicago, which Barack envies—though she envies his idyllic childhood in Hawaii. She’s very involved with organizing Black student events and doesn’t go out a lot. Despite making Barack feel more comfortable being himself, Regina also calls Barack out on his selfishness and bad behavior.

Regina Quotes in Dreams from My Father

The Dreams from My Father quotes below are all either spoken by Regina or refer to Regina. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Family and Community Theme Icon
).
Chapter 5 Quotes

Except now I was hearing the same thing from black people I respected, people with more excuses for bitterness than I might ever claim for myself. Who told you that being honest was a white thing? they asked me. Who sold you this bill of goods, that your situation exempted you from being thoughtful or diligent or kind, or that morality had a color?

Related Characters: Barack Obama (speaker), Regina, Reggie
Page Number: 110
Explanation and Analysis:
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Regina Quotes in Dreams from My Father

The Dreams from My Father quotes below are all either spoken by Regina or refer to Regina. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Family and Community Theme Icon
).
Chapter 5 Quotes

Except now I was hearing the same thing from black people I respected, people with more excuses for bitterness than I might ever claim for myself. Who told you that being honest was a white thing? they asked me. Who sold you this bill of goods, that your situation exempted you from being thoughtful or diligent or kind, or that morality had a color?

Related Characters: Barack Obama (speaker), Regina, Reggie
Page Number: 110
Explanation and Analysis: