What The Election of Obama Means To Me

“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.”

Our Great Nation was founded on principles of equality, but the model of our actions has not lived up to those ideals. Granted, it is an immense goal, but the founding principles are what make this a Great Nation.

When my mom was a child the Declaration of Independence had an invisible asterisk with a footnote that it did not apply to people of color. When my great-grandmother was a child there was another asterisk that women were also excluded. Slowly, over the course of many decades we have eliminated the legal barriers, but the cultural barriers have been slower and more difficult to correct. We have taught our children one thing and modeled something less perfect.

For the past week my son has been telling me that with Obama we will be electing the first “dark skinned” president. Well, yes we did! With the election of Barack Hussein Obama the chasm between the ideals our Nation was founded upon and the model of our actions that inform the perception of future generations got a little smaller.

Don’t get me wrong; I in no way believe we have actually reached “equal opportunity” yet. Racism will continue to exist. The thing is, when my sons learn about the Declaration of Independence, there will be a little less disconnect between what he is taught and what he sees.

Now, I did not vote for Obama because of the pigment of his skin, and I did not vote for Obama in spite of the pigment of his skin. I voted for Barack Obama because I did not like the direction our country was headed. I felt that we had developed a pattern and system for power to be abused; I wanted a new direction for the longevity of our Nation.

“But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.”

Last night, the American people performed their duty. In a beautiful display of a country founded on Democratic principles we were able to “throw off” an abusive Government peacefully. The checks and balances of our Democracy worked last night. We did not need to have an armed revolution, we did not need to assassinate or persecute our governing authorities. We were able to participate in the system as it was designed and overthrow a governing party that a majority of Americans no longer wanted in power. With participation at it’s highest level in recent history I am proud of the structure of our Nation and I am proud of “We the People”.

We have a long hard road ahead of us as we have to tackle some massive challenges. We are going to have to conclude two wars in a way that will be in the long-term interest of our Country first and foremost while also considering the interest of the rest of the world. We are going to make a cultural shift away from a Nation of debtors to a Nation that creates value other than consumption and builds wealth instead of amenities. We are going to have to restore the precedence of individual liberty over national security. We are going to have to deal with the largest exit of the workforce ever in our history and the care of an aging population.

This is not going to be easy. But after re-reading The Declaration of Independence this morning I am keenly aware that these are not the greatest challenges we have ever faced. We can do this. President Barack Obama has the opportunity and the talents to help us help ourselves. He cannot fix this for us, but he has the talents and respect needed to help us facilitate the tough situations and navigate the obstacles in our path.

As much as I am tempted to draw parallels between the condemnations of King George in the Declaration and the actions of President Bush, that has no place in today’s world. The American People’s vote was a condemnation of the Neo-Conservative way of doing things. That chapter of our Nation’s history is coming to a close. I cannot predict the future to know that this next chapter will be better than the last, but it sure seems like it to me. I have immense gratitude for the record numbers of voters who came out and voiced their preference. I am glad people voted for John McCain; I am glad that a majority (no matter how you slice it) voted for Barack Obama.

I am incredibly proud to be an American today. That is something I have not felt in a long time.