WHAT OBAMA BRINGS

“Barack Obama is the president-elect of the United States of America.”

It was an absurd thing to say a couple of years ago. I remember in the summer of 2006, drinking beers with friends and having one of our few serious conversations that didn’t involve sports. It was a conversation about our various ideologies. I recall hearing differing viewpoints, people who believed strictly in the power of making money, people who believed that their guns should be protected, and more viewpoints of just wanting “their piece of the pie” and nothing more. Earlier that year, I had just completed and was transformed by Barack Obama’s memoir, Dreams From My Father.

At the pinnacle of its influence on my life, I spoke about how we can all have these things. I felt “Obama-esque.” I was in the zone; preaching my belief, or my shared belief with then Senator Obama about how there was enough for everyone. I was sold on the notion that people who wanted to become rich, could become rich if that’s what they wanted. But it didn’t have to involve pushing others further down to achieve their means.

I was labeled an unrealistic idealist. I was labeled contradictory. My friends told me to take another shot because it was time for me to pass out from all the drinking I had already done because apparently, I wasn’t making any sense. Perhaps I was, and still am naïve. I may be stuck in my liberal Wonderland, having immersed myself so deep into the Obama ideology that I ignorantly believed that this possibility existed in an American Democracy where it has never manifested itself in our nation’s history

But here we are, November 6, 2008, realizing that there are millions of others who share this same belief. We didn’t have the means to spell it out. There was no figure that delved into the minds of common Americans to help guide our energies towards something meaningful. It could be that the lack of a figure like Barack Obama to help us clearly spell out our own personal ideologies can be attributed to the Internet generation’s apathetic attitude to current events.

The 1940’s had WWII and the Great Depression. The 1960’s had Vietnam, a charismatic young president in JFK and the Civil Rights Movement whose influence bled well into the 70’s. Since that time, aside from the Cold War, the Gulf War and the War on Terrorism, our generation lacked that true watershed moment which transformed the face, ideals and focus of the “next generation.”

President Obama’s campaign seems to have awaken our apathetic generation. I’m assuming that record turnouts were expected and confirmed for people in the 18-39 age group. Most first time voters. That in itself manifests the charismatic nature of our president-elect.

But a good friend of mine continues to reiterate his skepticism of our generation. Whether President Obama’s campaign was seen as a trend, largely influenced by actors and musicians, who spoke in favor of Obama. People may have voted for Barack Obama not really knowing why, other than he was different, relatively young, and because Will.I.Am produced a video to show his support. I have to agree with my friend. As my friend so clearly texted to me the morning after the election, if you ask someone why he or she voted for him, you’ll hear something along the lines of “change” and “hope.” Not necessarily bad reasons, but definitely not substantive enough to want to put a person in charge of the most influential nation in the world. He is arguably the most eloquent human being that I have ever heard orate a crowd, but eloquence is nothing more than hot air if one's promises can't be kept.

Our challenge, by putting this man in office, is to continue to pay attention. It is imperative to hold him accountable to what he promised. Having voted him in, we are responsible for ensuring that America will improve its standing in the world and here at home. We cannot afford to allow President Obama to simply be a MTV fad or a face on a T-shirt that you bought at Urban Outfitters that you put away because it’s no longer in season. Maybe I’m underestimating what we’re capable of.

That is what Barack Obama gives us. Barack Obama gives us an opportunity to redefine America. To redefine or refine our personal beliefs. Whether you supported him or not this past election, what President Obama has forced all Americans to do is reflect upon themselves and their values. He has given us a crossroads. At the very least, his election is an opportunity to become a more tolerant, accepting and fearless society.

What the world thinks:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/article5089550.ece