A New America

Barack Obama has been elected the 44th president of the United States, the first black man to ever be president, the first president to ever make me cry. I am so proud to be an American right now. I am so proud to, for the first time, glimpse an "America as good as its promise". I want to explain what makes this election different. We all know that Barack Obama is a black man in a world where black men (and women) haven't been afforded the rights, privileges, or opportunities that are said to come with our citizenship. But this is only one facet of what makes this moment so incredible. Yes, he is a black man, but truly he is also an amazing, brilliant, daring human being who has given so selflessly of his time and talents to the purpose of healing this broken nation. I (and I know I'm not alone) have been without hope for this country for so long, that it was a foreign feeling, a strange awakening that took place when I first read Dreams From my Father, almost two years ago. And even while I kind of hoped, I never really believed. I wanted to believe. I wanted to with every fiber of my being, but this country has been so miserable for so long. You don't have to watch Eyes on the Prize to be reminded of the injustices people of color have suffered and continue to suffer on a daily basis. In my case I can simply look at my life, listen to the stories of my family and friends, remember my own stories. I don't say this expecting pity. I refuse to be a victim. I just want you to understand the constructs of my consciousness, the experience of America that has led me to a point where I could feel so desperate...the weight of my country's ills, disparaging my spirit on a daily basis. Without night, would day be as bright?

I want to explain how it feels to witness the realization, the culmination of multiple lifetimes of struggle, but I just don't have the words. All I can say is that today everything changes. Today I am able to believe, to see the proof that what I've hoped for, for so long, can...is transforming into something more tangible than hope,that my hope and the hopes of so many Americans is now a reality. I now have a president of whom I can be proud. But more than that I feel amazed to finally be a part of an America of which I can be proud. My country is actually my country. And now it is time to work. Now is the time to give, to serve, to reconstruct this new America....now is the time to do what we can to expand beyond hope into creating a better reality. I promise you, I will do my part. Thank you Barack Obama. Thank you Michelle, and all of those who have helped to make today possible.