Brand New Day!!!
Well, the day I never thought I'd see in my lifetime is here! We now have an African-American President of the United States! May the Goddess grant him wisdom and good fortune!
The speech was good, and the city was packed! The closing benediction was amusing towards the end (paraphrasing): "Black, not told to go in the back; brown, stick around; yellow, be mellow; white, acknowledge what's right." :) I don't have the exact words but those were the gist. :)
It's amazing how far we've come in half a century. In 1952, during the Korean War, my 17-year-old father joined the U.S. Army, only a few years after Truman had ordered integration in the military. During training in the Deep South men were assigned to share a tent. He received a black tentmate. Some good ol' boys came up to him and said they'd slit his throat if he didn't request a different partner. My dad told them to go to hell. Good thing they didn't carry through on their threat, or my sister and I wouldn't be here! :) But my dad's eyes were opened during that time in the Deep South, because even though the North wasn't an utopia, it was practically medieval down there.
The most powerful line in Barack's speech: sixty years ago his father couldn't expect to be served in a D.C. restaurant! So many people have those memories, to be sure.
And now we're finally moving forward. I'm allowing myself joy on this day, because my cynical self knows it's going to be tough ahead, and Barack won't be able to keep all of his campaign promises, but for today, I just want to revel in the joy! :)
The speech was good, and the city was packed! The closing benediction was amusing towards the end (paraphrasing): "Black, not told to go in the back; brown, stick around; yellow, be mellow; white, acknowledge what's right." :) I don't have the exact words but those were the gist. :)
It's amazing how far we've come in half a century. In 1952, during the Korean War, my 17-year-old father joined the U.S. Army, only a few years after Truman had ordered integration in the military. During training in the Deep South men were assigned to share a tent. He received a black tentmate. Some good ol' boys came up to him and said they'd slit his throat if he didn't request a different partner. My dad told them to go to hell. Good thing they didn't carry through on their threat, or my sister and I wouldn't be here! :) But my dad's eyes were opened during that time in the Deep South, because even though the North wasn't an utopia, it was practically medieval down there.
The most powerful line in Barack's speech: sixty years ago his father couldn't expect to be served in a D.C. restaurant! So many people have those memories, to be sure.
And now we're finally moving forward. I'm allowing myself joy on this day, because my cynical self knows it's going to be tough ahead, and Barack won't be able to keep all of his campaign promises, but for today, I just want to revel in the joy! :)