This Moment in History

Yes We Can!!  And Yes We Did!!

It's over.  The election happened last night and the long 22 months of work is done.  Barack Obama won the election and will be the 44th President of the United States.  George Bush and his cronies will be a thing of the past.

I'm unabashedly an Obama supporter and I have been since about May of 2006 when I signed on to work in my county.  I went on to a couple of leadership positions and was an Obama delegate to my county and district Democratic conventions.  My original Obama "Hope" sign still stands in my yard, faded and taped together.  It went through a dreadful Iowa winter but it stayed put.  It's joined by a new Obama-Biden sign and they'll both stay there until January 20, 2009 - the day of the Inaugural.

I'm so proud to be an American and very proud of the people who voted last night, both Republican and Democrat (and all the "others").  We made history and changed our country forever.  Think about it - we saw a woman, an African America, and a Hispanic as viable candidates.  I don't think many people will bat an eye in the next election when women and people of color run for office.  We've torn down that barrier and will be better people for it. 

I was a Poll Official last night and helped register many new voters who came to cast their votes for the first time.  My county had a 70% voter turnout!  I hope people's interest in the politics of this country remains strong.  We need to use the responsible given to us by the US Constitution and make our voices heard.  It's true that you can't complain if you don't vote.

I'm not so starry eyed that I ignore that Obama is a politician.  I know he doesn't walk on water.  But he's a man of intelligence and character and possesses good judgement.  I don't buy into the lack of experience arguement either.  He headed up an efficient, effective campaign made up of tens of thousands of workers - both paid and unpaid.  We worked for almost 2 years with virtually no infighting (a la the Clinton campaign), stayed on message, raised millions of dollars and prevailed when he was counted out from the beginning.  He's a CEO to be reckoned with and knows how to surround himself with very competent people.

I'm sure I'll come down to earth tomorrow but I just want to savor this time. 

"Tonight, we gather to affirm the greatness of our nation - not because of the height of our skyscrapers, or the power of our military, or the size of our economy. Our pride is based on a very simple premise, summed up in a declaration made over two hundred years ago:"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."

"That is the true genius of America -- a faith in simple dreams, an insistence on small miracles; that we can tuck in our children at night and know that they are fed and clothed and safe from harm; that we can say what we think, write what we think, without hearing a sudden knock on the door; that we can have an idea and start our own business without paying a bribe; that we can participate in the political process without fear of retribution; and that our votes will be counted -- at least, most of the time."

(from Keynote Address at the Democratic National Convention, July 27, 2004)

And then I ran across this essay by Bruce Tenenbaum on "Huffington Post". The "bold type" is mine.

America Grows Up

The "Bradley Effect" is no more. For all the talk of race being an issue in this election, it turns out that race was not an issue at all.

Half a century after "separate but equal" was shot down by the Supreme Court, the American people have shown that equality for all is not just a slogan.

Barack Obama wasn't supposed to be able to win in the "rust belt." He cleaned up from Ohio to Pennsylvania. He wasn't supposed to win with white voters. He did better with white voters than any Democratic candidate in recent history. He wasn't supposed to win the Latino vote. He was supposed to have trouble with Jewish voters. He carried both groups with ease. He wasn't supposed to win in the southern "red" states. He won Virginia and Florida and, as I write this, he stands to perhaps win more.

To be sure, we are still not done with the after effects of the American Civil War. Where most of America is headed in one direction, many of the states of the American south still appear headed in another, or, at the very least, resistant to change.

But this is not a day to talk about division. We are a great country. We fall down but we get up again. In our darkest moments, we always rise to the occasion. How can you not truly be proud of this nation tonight as we seek to rise above the tragedies of our past and to confront the problems of our present? It was, at times, an ugly campaign but it was also a historically astounding one. No matter whom you voted for, if you are an American, today is a day to unite and to prepare to face tomorrow together.

For my parent's generation, racism was an unavoidable fact of life. In my generation, we worked to avoid prejudice when we saw someone whose skin color was different from ours. The new generation no longer even sees a difference. What a terrific world tomorrow will bring.

I don't own rose-colored glasses. Obama's victory doesn't mean all is once again right with the world. There is much to be done. We have yet to elect a woman president. The fact that a candidate's religion or lack of religion is even discussed shows that we still have far to go when it comes to judging others. As African Americans achieve new heights, we still seem determined to limit the rights of another group, gay people. And, of course, Obama still needs to govern and show he can deliver on his message.

But for now we become one nation again. Now we unite and march forward and once more work on making the American Dream come true. Today we reject race as a deciding factor. Today we reject the politics of hate. Today we reject "Joe The Plumber" as the image of what "real" Americans are supposed to look like. For "real" Americans, and presidents, it turns out, can be almost anyone. Today is a great day for America. Make no mistake about it. Martin Luther King's dream is coming true. At last.