Last night, as you’re all sick of hearing by now, was the first of the 2012 Presidential debates. Today, I want to publish a post by a guest author. Her name is Tasia Large, and she is my mother. Tasia grew up on the South Side of Chicago right across the street from the Cook County Jail. She has seen some shit and experienced most of the things that life can throw at her — loss of family, serious sickness of children, personal health problems — but she doesn’t quit on anything. She doesn’t blame her problems on misfortune, a bad situation, or somebody else’s actions. She has instilled these values in me, and her goal is for me and my sister to live a better life than she did.

The following is an email she wrote to another South Sider, President Barack Obama. It is completely unedited, directly forwarded from her iPad. I’m quite proud that she knows how to do that. In its message, you will see the South Side toughness and values. They’ve no doubt both seen enough from Chicago — the real Chicago — to harden them so they don’t take anybody’s shit. This email was sent from Momma Tas to President Obama to remind him of that. I’m posting it to remind all of you.