Free Everybody's Got Something by Robin Roberts, Veronica Chambers

the race card, the gender card or any other card. It makes me laugh when people think that because I’m black I somehow have a special relationship with the Obamas. The Bush family was the first presidential family to welcome me, again and again, into the White House. I attended my first State Dinner during the tenure of George W. Queen Elizabeth of Britain was the honored guest, and as I made my way down the receiving line, President Bush—no secret that he was an ESPN fan—called me out, “Hey, SportsCenter!” I remember thinking, “I’m in line to meet the Queen of England, and the president of the United States has just recognized me from a job I haven’t had in years. How cool is that?”
    Amazing things happen when you let your passion be your purpose. My father’s passion for flying led him from pretending a broomstick was the joystick of a plane in the basement of his New Jersey home in the years of segregation to a distinguished career as a pilot for the hallowed Tuskegee Airmen. My mother’s passion for education led to a distinguished career in public service that began after her sixtieth birthday, after she’d raised four children and seen them all through college. My passion for sports: the little girl who moved to Mississippi at the age of nine—just me and my RC—but who was always game to see how high she could jump, how fast she could run, what feat her body could accomplish next, led me to the White House for dinner with the Queen. Where else do miracles like this happen to everyday people? One of the things that I think people know is that despite our troubles and our missteps, I am bullish on America. This is my country, the land that I love.
    Once we were on the ground, reporters in the White House press corps began to tweet that I had arrived for my exclusive interview. There was much speculation that the president would reverse his position on same-sex marriage. But we had no way to know for sure if that would be the case.
    At 1:30 p.m. sharp, President Obama walked into the room, and our team all rose to greet him. I’d interviewed him several times, the first being in 2007, when he first announced he was running for office. He always remembers that I was one of the few national journalists to request interviews with him. At one point, he was so far behind Hillary Clinton in the polls that many reporters discounted him. I never did. I never count out anyone.
    I began the interview by asking the president straight out, “So, Mr. President, are you still opposed to same-sex marriage?”
    He said, “At a certain point I’ve just concluded that for me, personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married.” The president of the United States had just officially endorsed marriage equality. It was historic, and my interview made headlines all around the world.
    One of the things that touched me most was how the president spoke about how his views had evolved, where so many of us learn and grow: at the dinner table. He said, “You know, Malia and Sasha, they’ve got friends whose parents are same-sex couples. And I—you know, there have been times where Michelle and I have been sitting around the dinner table. And we’ve been talking…about their friends and their parents. And Malia and Sasha would— It wouldn’t dawn on them that somehow their friends’ parents would be treated differently. It doesn’t make sense to them. And frankly, that’s the kind of thing that prompts—a change of perspective. You know, not wanting to somehow explain to your child why somebody should be treated differently, when it comes to the eyes of the law.”
    Many fellow journalists wondered why President Obama selected me for that interview. I can’t remember another time a reporter was scrutinized like I was. The person asking the questions is not important; the answers are what people care about. You know what my biggest concern was