Lilly Ledbetter, Sandra Fluke and Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren all spoke across color lines -- offering a voice for the women whose choices are limited and often overlooked.

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick and Newark, N.J., Mayor Cory Booker gave fiery addresses that only served to fuel speculation about the possibility of a second African-American president.

Though Republicans have not done enough to reach minority voters, Democrats have been careful not to make the same mistake with white working-class voters. One of the draws of former President Bill Clinton's seminal speech at the DNC was his appeal to working-class white males -- a demographic that the latest NBC-Wall Street Journal poll shows favors Romney.

Clinton clearly had the most memorable speech of the second day of the convention, but Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, solidified the Democratic message in his spirited address. "If being liberal and progressive means that I care for children and whether they go hungry," he said, "color me! Color me a Democrat!"

As television cameras panned the convention hall, they strategically highlighted the multiracial, multicultural group that makes up the delegation. But unlike in Tampa, where all the diversity was on the stage, these people are the majority of the Democratic alliance, working alongside their white brothers and sisters to re-elect a biracial president.

By embracing the diversity of its base, the Democrat Party is finally tapping into that power. And with eloquent spokespeople representing the melting pot, the Democrats are presenting a new face for an old American dream.

Edward Wyckoff Williams is contributing editor at The Root. He is a columnist and political analyst, appearing on MSNBC, Al-Jazeera, CBS Washington and national syndicated radio. Follow him on Twitter and on Facebook.

Like The Root on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.