I have been engaged in "diversity work" for nearly 30 years. In that time, there has been a theme that has been a consistent thread running through my life. I've been waiting for someone.
The someone I've been waiting for has finally arrived on the scene, and his name is Barack Obama.
Many of us were privileged to have been alive and aware of the societal shift of the 1960's. It was an amazing time in our nations history. Many institutions geared toward repression and segregation gave way to integration and equality. Schools, hospitals, public transit, restaurants and hotels began to provide service to all segments of the population. Employers began to implement changes in employment practices. These changes were applied not only to African Americans, but all people of color, women and differently abled individuals.
In the decades since, the nation has had time to settle into it's new role within its borders. We have had time to grow comfortable with the status quo and even to slip, a little, back into the comfort (or discomfort) of old habits. I have been waiting for someone to come and shake us out of our apathy, to rouse once again our sense of justice, and our belief that we can have positive change in this country. I have been waiting for someone who, for me, represents the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Not someone who advocates only for the rights of African Americans, but for the rights of ALL Americans. Someone who is interested in the welfare of children, battered women, the poor and the middle-class. Not someone who will lead us in boycotts and demonstrations, but who will work to tighten loop-holes in legislation, and to create new laws where the old are inadequate or nonexistent.
I've been waiting for someone..... I didn't know who it would be. I've been waiting for someone to recharge my battery with new hope. I've been waiting for someone with the audacity to believe that a change can be accomplished, and that we all can be part of implementing that change. I've been waiting for him, and at last he has arrived.
I'm excited to remind you that the world is watching this election cycle, not just the US. The citizens of the world are eager to welcome him to the world community as the leader of this Great Nation. His collaborative style, his quiet grace, his genuineness, and his ability to seek new solutions make him perfect for the position. I now live with the daily joy of knowing that my next President, and yours, Barack Obama, has finally arrived.
I am a civil rights baby, in the truest sense of the term.
In 1948, he met my mother, a petite blonde co-ed at UC Berkely. The laws against intermarriage were still in place in California. They were repealed in 1949, and my parents wed in 1950. Soon they had three children, and Dad was still on the forefront of the battle.
Dad led many civil rights activities in the 1950's and '60's. From sit-ins to boycotts to "testing" landlords and employers, to leafletting, Dad continued his dedication to the cause. He took cases to court, and always won. He even took a free speech case to the US Supreme Court (Talley v. California) which is still being used as precedent in current cases.
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