Monday, January 19, 2009

Inaugural thoughts

I'm really excited about the inauguration tomorrow. Wil already knows the name of our new President. This is a really exciting time; I truly hope that Obama lives up to the promise of change from business as usual.
All the coverage of pre-inaugural events got me thinking. So much is being made, by the media, of Obama being the first black president. And a lot of people are getting into that hype. But  think there has been a paradigm shift between the Boomer generation and ours, and even more with those coming up behind us. 
Inroads were made by the Boomers, but they still seem to see a black man who was elected. I think a lot of the following generations see what many of us see - a man who was elected President who happens to be black. This is why the time is right for this to happen. I really hope the momentum continues and we see a woman President and a Jewish President, etc, etc, because that's exactly what they won't be. They will be Presidents who happen to be Latino or gay or whatever. 
So much has been made of the barrier being broken so African-American families can now tell their sons they can grow up to be President someday. But there are a lot more groups who haven't broken that barrier. Do I think Hillary Clinton should have won the nomination and the election so we could have the first female President? Personally, I don't think she was the right candidate. But I would love in the future to have a more diverse choice and be able to vote for a woman because I think she is the best qualified.
What about colorblindness? I don't think it's so much that as color-indifference. It really doesn't matter.
I'll be watching all the inaugural hoopla tomorrow with the boys. I'll recognize the historic nature of the event. And I'll hope that tomorrow we'll move into a time when it isn't historic but normal.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.