The New President

With the election having taken place last week, it's time to reflect on what a historical event it was. Regardless of your party affiliation, regardless of your race, regardless of if you voted for him or not, the election of Barack Obama was something we will never forget. He is the first president-elect to be African-American in the history of this country. Can you imagine that? It's absolutely amazing that this country, one that claims to be so diverse and free, has never elected a minority president. Sure we are barely 40 years or so out from the Civil Rights movement, but our country has come a long ways. It could be argued, by some (including me) that people like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton have hurt the cause of minorities advancing due to them making everything, no matter how small, a matter of race. It's also amazing to me that Jackson, who was present at Grant Park in Chicago for the brilliant acceptance speech Obama gave, cried like a baby after saying in 2007, that he wanted to "cut his nuts off" for talking down to black people, among other things. It's those kind of remarks and divisiveness that, in my opinion, has slowed things down for minorities. They need a new voice, and hopefully they have it now. I do understand though why African-Americans all over the country broke down in tears over the election of Obama.

As a white American male, I will never understand the suppression and racism black people went through. I won't completely understand what it means for them to have "one of their own" elected to the most powerful office in the world. When I see Obama, I don't see black or white, I see a very articulate, and smart individual. Whether you agree with his policies or not, I hope he can turn this country around to restore it as the super power it once was. I pray that he can unite all Americans no matter what race, color, or creed, no matter what sexual orientation, no matter what level of income or education. Whether you voted for him or not, we have to accept him and stand behind him and hope he can lead us back to the promise land once again. Let's hope he can do this. He is not only the hope of African-Americans and minorities...he is the hope of ALL Americans.

All of us will be watching very closely. As of now, Obama is our one hope of bringing this nation back to what it once was.