History Has Been Made

I don't even know where to start. I was so emotional last night, and I'm still emotional today. History has been made, and a country that I didn't have any faith in, made me believe again.

Barack Hussein Obama is the president. OBAMA IS THE PRESIDENT! This is a defining moment in our country's history for more reasons than I can count. But I have to tell you, our future is bright, and as a woman of color, I'm looking forward to finally getting some respect that I more than deserve.

This is a breakthrough that even a few years ago, wouldn't have been possible. This is a truly symbolic moment in the evolution of the United States' racial history, a history that has been fraught with ugly, dehumanizing events.

Obama is truly a phenomenon, and as I watched the votes in Florida, Ohio, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New Mexico come in, I realized that we have entered a new era. 143 years ago, Obama could have been owned as a slave. Today, he's our new president.

Last night, watching Obama's speech, I was emotionally and physically drained of all of the anxiety that had settled in me. Today I feel like a new person. In fact, I'm starting my citizenship process. That's right ladies and gentlemen, yours truly, after being a Canadian citizen for 24 years of her life, is going to become an American. The time is right. This is what I needed to see before fully pledging my allegiance to this country.

Watching Jesse Jackson wipe away tears in his eyes last night was such an important moment. I can only imagine what last night meant to him. As a man who stood side by side with Martin Luther King, to see Barack Obama elected as President must have been for him, a moment that was indescribable.

I can't fully articulate my feelings on what happened last night. I prayed for this to happen, I did what I could to show my support, but never in my wildest dreams did I think this would happen. I didn't think that the United States could accept a black man as their president. I was too bitter from my own experiences with identity.

I was wrong. And I'm so glad I was wrong. Congratulations, America, we did it!

I highly recommend you watch this slideshow titled "Singing for Freedom" from the New York Times. It shows you how far we've come.

(And shout out to my mixed-race friends, yeah multiracial! It's for real now.)

Photo is from The New York Times.

BotherVoting.org

Do you know someone who may be too busy, too lazy, unmotivated, skeptical, or disillusioned to bother voting? Put a minimal effort into changing their minds!

Bother Voting is a website that provides inspiration and directions towards the polls for those who are undecided about voting. You can send ecards, put an ad on your website, or just send people to bothervoting.org!

Go ahead, harass your friends with ecards!

OBAMAAAAAAAA

GO VOTE. Now. I'm making last minute calls this morning. Do anything you can!

I am even rocking a tee-shirt that says "Rock the Booth". Anything will work.

I woke up this morning at 5:40 a.m. and couldn't go back to sleep. I am simultaneously nervous and excited.

I just really hope that tomorrow I can wake up happy.

An Important Quote

My friend Ghenet sent me this quote a little while back. I'm sure lots of you have heard it, but I think it's pretty important:

Rosa sat so Martin could walk.
Martin walked so Obama could run.
Obrama runs so our children can fly.

Starbucks will buy your coffee if you vote!

Starbucks Shared Planet

ONE DAY LEFT!!!

For all of you who are able to vote in this country, please do. We need as much support as possible! As a Canadian citizen who has lived in the U.S. for waaaaay too long not to have a U.S. passport, this is the first time I have wished that I could forgo the application process and just vote. Instead, I'm trying to do as much as possible to make sure that people haven't become complacent. We have one more day. ONE MORE DAY.

We are one day away from what could be the most historic election this country has seen. In fact, it's already a historic election due to the voter turnout, but we have one day left to do as much as possible to encourage people to go out tomorrow and vote.

This is the last call for change. Please do all you can to make sure that on Wednesday, our new president is one that will make this country proud.

And I PROMISE, that if Barack Obama wins, I will go out the next day and apply for American citizenship.

Here's a link to how you can help: my.barackobama.com

You Can Vote However You Like

YouTube - You Can Vote However You Like

:)

via ffffound (of course)

4 days!

Feeling a little uneasy.

With the election only 6 days away, I admit, I'm quite nervous about how things are going to turn out. For all of you Obama voters out there, please don't get complacent now! We still have 6 days to make sure that this election turns out the right way.

Even though the polls suggest that Obama is miles ahead of McCain, I don't think that we should assume that Obama's got it in the bag. Stranger things have happened, especially on Election Day.

The New York Times has an article about the unease amongst black voters that their early votes won't be counted. There's a rumor going around Jacksonville, Florida that early voting is nothing more than a disenfranchisement scam.

Could this possibly be true? Well, in West Virginia, people are sending out fliers saying that Republicans vote on November 4th, and Democrats vote on November 5th. While most of us know this is untrue, what about members of the underserved population who don't have access to important information?

Racial bias still lingers in this country. I'm worried that people who vote in minority areas will be subjected to rolling blackouts or that the bus line won't work. Is this paranoid? Maybe so, but I'm not convinced that "something" won't happen on Election Day.

And how post racial are we? A few days ago, two white supremacists plotted to go on a national killing spree, decapitating black people and ultimately targeting Barack Obama. They planned to shoot 88 people- 14 by beheading. 88 and 14 are symbolic numbers in the white supremacist community.

Sometimes reading this stuff makes me never want to leave my house again.

Anyway, don't give up hope. Change is upon us!

The GOP ticket's appalling contempt for science and learning.

Palin's contempt for science seriously disturbs me.

Read the article on the always brilliant Slate.com