Every time I think about this, I have to fight tears. I love this part of the speech, when Barack Obama came out with his family. I love that he thanked, gratefully, his wife Michelle for being the rock in his life, and promised his daughters a puppy to take to the White House.
Every time I think about this, it's hard for me to separate this from what it means for the rest of us. I know a lot of people suggest that this historic event transcends race, but that doesn't prevent those of us that share the complicated effect race has on us of thinking about what this means historically. The firehoses, the poll taxes and literacy tests, the dogs and sit-ins. We've come a long way. But we've got a way to go.
Ascension, yes. It's a victory on many levels. But now the real work begins and we have this shining example, this beautiful family, this strong, intelligent, eloquent, cool, collected, graceful man, and his equally strong, intelligent, elegant, gracious wife as examples of both the potential we as a people possess, and the opportunities that are afforded and available to any of us.
It's time for the rest of us to ascend.
Leave a comment