History in the Making???: A Call to Make History

on january 20th, 2009, i joined nearly 2 million people on the mall in our nation's capital to witness the 44th president of the united states being sworn-in.  so many emotions swelled within me throughout the swearing-in ceremony.  

so now that the red carpets have been rolled up, the millions have returned to their homes, and the first african american president has begun to sign executive orders, i cannot help but ponder what's next for those who invested in the message of "hope" and "change".  there is no shortage of work to be done from international crises such as the fragile cease-fire between Israel and Palestine, the global economic meltdown, global warming and the detrimental effects of climate change and the genocide in Darfur to domestic issues such as the reinstatement of civil liberties and personal freedoms that the bush administration eradicated in the name of "security", the erosion of the public education system, the widening gap between the wealthy and everyone else, and the lack of full civil rights for america's LGBT citizens. the to-do list grows day-by-day.  so it should come as no surprise that no man, no matter how charismatic, handsome, well-intentioned, intelligent, or politically savvy can get our country "back on track." 

while i supported obama, i by no means agreed with him on all issues.  nonetheless, i firmly believed in the momentum and energy he sparked among people of my generation.  it is this energy that i believe can be transformative and progressive.  it is time for us to take our place in history as a generation that must confront complex challenges with compassion and open-mindedness.  getting obama elected was the easy part. though many in my generation were politically and socially engaged well before obama even formally announced his intention to run for president, his election does provide an opportunity upon which we must now capitalize.  the vision must extend beyond a single figure, the ideas and ideals of democracy trump the accomplishment of any one person.  we, yes, we must move and commit to moving in spite of the setbacks we will encounter.  

do not let the symbolism of this historical moment dwarf the significance of the organizing and mobilizing that made such a historic moment possible.  we are powerful beyond measure.

signing off,

a diva feminist