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Diverse citizens found a way forward together
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Published: November 16, 2008
It was almost 11 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 4. I was sitting in my well-worn, comfortable, maroon recliner at home, getting in late from a class, when CNN (Wolf Blitzer) announced that Barack Obama was projected president-elect. Just like that, in the flash of a moment, it seemed, Obama had exceeded the number of electoral college votes needed to become president of the United States of America. I had a front-row seat to history.
Obama, president-elect. Who would have really believed that what started in Springfield, Ill., almost two years ago, from the steps of the Old State Capitol where Abraham Lincoln began his political career, would end in victory and the first black American president? Hoped for, but expected to actually happen, in our lifetime?
I sat, momentarily motionless, staring trance-like at the tube, emotion welling up in me, as my wife shouted, threw her hands in the air, and said what so many were expressing: "Thank you, Jesus!" I wiped away the tears of joy and excitement as if a burden had been lifted.
"Nov. 4, 2008, shall forever shine in our hearts and minds and those of generations yet unborn," said Robert Harris, of Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, in an e-mail message to members of the group. "Yes, a proud moment not just for African Americans, but for all Americans and for, indeed, the world." His thoughts succinctly captured the spirit and impact of the moment.
On Election Day, as the world watched with great anticipation, a diverse group of thoughtful, committed citizens changed the political landscape in America. It is a new day, one to be remembered for a lifetime. For example, an acquaintance (white), a free-lance writer, and her family were excited about their participation in making a difference. "What an amazing and wonderful election," she said. "I am so happy, we really worked to get our family vote out," she continued. "This time, I feel that every vote really did count, and I'm glad we all were counted!"
The poem "I, Too, Sing America" by Langston Hughes speaks to that feeling of inclusion and pride, as does singing "Lift Every Voice and Sing," written as a poem by James Weldon Johnson, as part of a celebration of Lincoln's Birthday on Feb. 12, 1900. It was the hymn of praise at United Metropolitan Missionary Baptist Church the Sunday following the election. However, it was the song that followed it that moved me to tears again: "I Tried Him and I Know Him." It was a special moment of thankfulness, acknowledgment and recognition of the divine orchestrating the events that ushered us to this point in history.
I'm not the only person who cried on Election Day, as a friend stated that her eyes were a little puffy, too. She was proud that her 5-year-old son was participating in this historic moment. "Today and events leading up to today give me so much more hope for the future of the world he'll grow up in," she said.
An e-mail from her brother encouraged me to light up a cigar. "Good morning to you on the day after our 'historic election day.' The feelings I have inside of me are overwhelmingly filled with pride and joy today," he wrote, echoing the sentiments of millions of people.
Another friend, a Republican, said the best man won and "as a nation we must be committed to stand behind the democratic process ... and most importantly the candidate chosen by the people to run this great county." He pledges his support and prayers.
"Obama's election as president means that our mutual admiration and love is representative of a new era where we all are more accountable to one another as human beings," a young black male with many white friends said. "Stereotypes and preconceptions should be replaced with an honest assessment of character."
He went on to say, "We all should be in awe of the power of the God we claim to represent individually and as a nation. Even if you do not believe in God ... hopefully you agree that peace and humility will be the foundations of a future that sustain life as we know it rather than destroy it."
As Bishop Woodie White suggested in a talk two days after the election, at Winston-Salem State University, we (all of us) have been living like "a widely separated family in the same house." Now, maybe, there is some common ground for us to move forward together.
Nigel Alston is a Dale Carnegie trainer and motivational speaker. He can be reached at nalston1@triad.rr.com.
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