A mandate for change and a nation healed

By Calvin Johnson
Collegian Reporter
November 13, 2008

Election Day wasn’t simply a win—it was a whipping. Together, we offered a stern repudiation of the politics of division and of Republicanism. And we gave not only the Democrats, but also America, a clear mandate for change. The change is striking—a black man will soon lead America.

For centuries, African Americans have often felt like wanderers in a foreign land. Justice has always been delayed and our plight too often forgotten. For blacks, for minorities, America hasn’t always been a kind and gentle place. Discrimination is commonplace and in too many settings we’re still treated as second class citizens.

There’s still an achievement gap, still two scales of justice and the poison of racism still trickles through America. Dignity and hope have been drained from the hearts of so many people of color, but the night of Nov. 4 something happened in America. The tears that streamed down faces of color that night weren’t merely for Barack Obama’s victory, but the dream he embodies and the hope he summons in us.

At the victory party I stood next to women, young and old, overcome with emotion and men whose staid veneers shattered as they watched President-elect Obama give his victory speech. They recalled the dogs and the hoses of the 1960s. They remembered the bombing in Birmingham and the March on Washington. They were reminded of the struggles and sacrifices of past generations. And they thought they would never see the day when a black man would be elected president.

This was not simply black America’s moment, but America’s moment. More than any policy, hope is the biggest change this election brought. We Americans are by nature an optimistic people, and the thread of hope is the central theme that binds our diverse tapestry together. As people of all colors watched the Obamas stroll onstage they whispered to their children “See, anything is possible in America.”

We wept together Nov. 4 when we considered how far we’ve come. We wept tears of joy together, because finally we have a president worthy of the office. The last eight years have dulled our beacon, but we’re still the shining city on a hill that John Winthrop beamed about long ago. And across the world, in far-off lands, they envy the statement we made. We’ve elected a leader who asks us to cast aside our trivial differences and embrace our commonality.

The problems Obama will face as president will be enormous. We face two wars, a global economic downturn and many other significant challenges. But we’ve elected the right man to meet these problems head on.

After the party on election night I thought about those steps. Many years ago a group of slaves constructed Capitol Hill. In the hot sun, in horrible conditions, hope was the only thing that kept them going. I can hear their voices. I can hear their songs. They spoke of a day when all men would be equal. They spoke of a time when America would be healed. And they dreamed of a day and a time when an African American would climb the pristine steps of the Capitol and take the Oath of Office. Their dream will be fulfilled at noon Jan. 20.

johnsonc10@student.lasalle.edu