Obama

16 Arrested During Election Night Celebration in Charles Village

CEM — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 11:21:32 -0800

Here's a letter that we received and wanted to share with everyone. If anyone else would like to publicize first-hand information about the police misconduct in Charles Village on Election Night, or has other Election Night experiences they'd like to share, please post your comments here or email us at cem@centerforemergingmedia.org.

Marc,

During the night following the election, my roommates and I walked
down to 33rd and St. Paul and started celebrating the election of
Barack Obama. We quickly gained support of local students, and our
group of seven quickly grew to over 400. What was a beautifully
patriotic evening, filled with unity and gentle celebration, quickly
turned into fear and chaos as the Baltimore Police Department randomly
(and illegally) assaulted, intimidated, and arrested many members of a
peaceful crowd.

Last Spring, President Ungar invited you to speak at Goucher to a
group of Goucher students, faculty, and staff. President Ungar
personally invited me at the last moment, claiming it was essential
that I hear you speak. Your discussion inspired me to want to get more
involved with our city, and this semester several of my friends and I
moved down to Charles Village from Towson, in order to become true
Baltimoreans.

On November 4, the six of us - all sophomores at Goucher, voted
for the first time. Sending in my absentee ballot to my native
California was one of the most exciting things I have ever done, and
we were all excited to partake in making history. Just a month before
hearing you speak at Goucher, I had the opportunity to shake now
President-elect Obama's hand at an election rally in Wilmington. I
took the train up to Wilmington by myself, and I instantly befriended
a group of students from the University of Delaware. The feeling of
unity was overwhelming, and I instantly knew this campaign was unlike
anything else in history.

The night of Nov. 4th was no exception. My roommates and I had to get
outside to celebrate. People joined quickly and we were suddenly
flanked by members of the community, students from several
institutions, schoolteachers, and professors - all united and chanting
"USA! USA!". The Hopkins Campus Security respected the crowd and kept
it under control, and it became a truly beautiful event. I was
surrounded by people I had never met before, of all colors: black and
white, Muslim and Jewish, old and young, from near and far all
celebrating under American flags.

You have already heard about what the police did last night. They
arrested two of my roommates and another one of my friends, for
reasons that were never disclosed. I stood and watched while my
roommate, a 19-year-old girl from New Jersey, was grabbed by the
throat by two policemen twice her size and had her arms bound so
tightly behind her back, she was screaming in agony.

I have talked with Goucher President Sanford Ungar, and he has already tried to help us get our
voice heard. The fact is that this happens every night in this city,
without a single mention in the Sun or on the local TV news. These
students and the professor that were arrested were never told their
rights and were fingerprinted, photographed, intimidated, and forced
to spend hours in cells with people charged with violent crimes.
Fortunately, my friends and the rest of these aforementioned sixteen
that were arrested are lucky enough to be backed up by institutions
like Goucher College and Johns Hopkins University.

I know this letter is far from brief, and I appreciate that you have
taken the time to read this. I was inspired by your discussion at
Goucher, and wanted to know what I could do to change something in
this city. I think Baltimore is a beautiful place buried in an
inconceivable amount of filth. Before election day I couldn't fathom
how I could help, or what I could even help with. I now know the
intricacies of how the Baltimore Police Department detains citizens
without Mirandizing them, charging them, or respecting their basic
freedoms. I feel I can speak on behalf of everyone who witnessed
Tuesday night's atrocities when I say that we want to help.

The sixteen people arrested last night were picked randomly. It could
have been anyone. I have spoken with and know personally several of
those arrested and can tell you that they were all respectable and
respectful citizens that have done so much already to make this city a
better place. Will these volunteers, public school teachers, artists,
and professors voices be drowned out?

I hope not.

Thank you again for speaking to us at Goucher. Baltimore needs you,
and is lucky to have you.

Thank you,

Nick Bourland
Goucher College class of 2011

Day After the Election by Marc Steiner

CEM — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 12:25:33 -0800

Last night, I went to my daughter Chelsea’s home to watch the returns. She was having a watch party. It was the perfect venue for that night for many reasons. Chelsea’s mom, Sayida Stone, my first wife and a dear friend, is African American. Chelsea is a Black woman, a mixed race child of America. She has three children, my grand children. Their father, Ebon, a schoolteacher, martial artist and musician, is Afro-Italian-Puerto Rican. From the beginning, Chelsea was deeply moved by Obama’s candidacy. It was their time, it was their day, and it is their time now.

Chelsea’s sister, Alana, her mom’s daughter with her husband who is Jamaican, is 21 years old, a brilliant artist and a junior at MICA. I call her my daughter once removed, she calls me Saba, which is Hebrew for grandfather. Alana was there with a dozen of her classmates. Young, African American, Latino, Asian, mixed race and white who worked for this campaign, who believed in this message of hope.

Chelsea’s friends who were there ranged from 28 to their early forties, every color of the American rainbow. Her mom, her husband Jenel, and others of our generation were there, as well.

The feeling in her home was electric and explosive, but explosive with peace and hope. When Obama was announced the next President of the Untied States of America, there was a pandemonium of joy, screaming, shouting, hugging, singing and champagne corks popping.

I looked around realizing this was their day. These young people believed so deeply and were so full of what the future might bring to us all.

While watching television it was hard not to notice the contrast between the Obama supporters in Grant Park in Chicago and the McCain supporters. Obama’s in a public park with thousands of people of every generation and race in America and McCain’s in a private club for the wealthy and all, well not all, but almost all, white.

This was an election of the two Americas from which we were born and in which we still live. Our great nation has no state religion. Our state religion is our democracy, our belief in freedom and liberty. The USA was founded on liberty and slavery in the same breath. Imagine that and think about that for a moment. Liberty and slavery are the foundations of our nation. The roots of the contradiction and the hope that dwell uneasily together in our nation’s soul were alive and palpable last night in this election.

Maybe the tenor is about to change. Race and racism hurt America. It is a deep wound in the Black American spirit. It is a burden of pain in white America, as well.

The man who was voted in to become the 44th President of the United States of America may be changing the tenor and tone of our nation. In the spirit of the civil rights warriors, he was unbowed and non-violent in his stand against his tormentors in this campaign. When Barack Obama was faced with lies and low blows dealt by his opponents, the Republican Party and their independent advocates, he responded with dignity, strength and love. So many of his supporters screamed that he should fight back, blow for blow and spit in their eye. Barack Obama chose to hold his head and his sense of morality and ethics high, so he kept walking straight ahead amidst the verbal blows and lies. He set a standard for his supporters and the America he believes in. The roots of that way of responding politically come from Martin Luther King, the Student Non Violent Coordinating Committee, Fannie Lou Hamer and the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party and the civil rights movement of the 1950’s and 60’s that they gave birth to and that gave birth to them. It bodes well for what we may be able to do in America together.

I am not naïve about the difficulty that lies ahead of us. Barack Obama is not the savior; he is the embodiment of hope for many Americans. The struggle is now on to define our future. We can now fight for something rather than against it. We will have a seat at the table for the debate on our nation’s future. We have serious work ahead of us.

Good gumbo, too, last night... A gumbo of America in the room, a gumbo of America who voted Obama, and a great gumbo in the pot.

Change We Cannot Quit On by Stavros Halkias

CEM — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 07:49:29 -0800

Here are some thoughts written late last night by CEM intern and UMBC student Stavros Halkias. We'd like to encourage everyone to send in their post-election thoughts. Post comments here, email us at cem@centerforemergingmedia.org, or call us on the air today between 5-6pm at 410-319-8888.

Voting for the first time in my life was legitimately exciting. From the moment I entered my polling place, which happened to be my elementary school, I was overcome with emotion. In the building where I first learned what the office of the president was, I would have a hand in choosing the next person to occupy that office. Even better, I was supporting a candidate I actually believed in and held incredible hopes for. My nerves and elation were held together by an overarching sense of purpose. I was part of a societal change, with my ballot serving as tangible proof. Why can’t I feel like this everyday? Why can’t every day be Election Day?

Despite these feelings, as I walked out of that polling station I couldn’t help but wonder “What’s next?” Barack Obama had the kind of campaign and following that was unprecedented in this nation’s history. His campaign deposed Democratic royalty in the primaries, broke all kinds of fundraising records, and truly inspired vast numbers of people for the first time in decades. The sobering realization I came to was that campaigns and administrations are two very different things. Historically, the energy campaigns create largely dies after the immediate goal of election is met. We can’t allow that to happen this time. All the people who voted for Barack Obama on Tuesday, all the people that were part of the historic movement for change in our country, must challenge themselves further. To borrow a few words from the President elect’s victory speech, “This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It can't happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice.”

So, don’t let things go back to the way they were before Barack came along. Don't rely solely on his administration to make change. Let Barack Obama's election be the beginning--not the end--of your efforts. Become more civically involved. Start helping your community in any way you can. Identify problems and work towards them yourself. Volunteer. Tutor at-risk youth. Protest injustice. Support more change-minded politicians. Study social change movements. Do something! Take the energy you put into the campaign and move it to your community, don’t let it go to waste. Don’t just get excited and wait for change-- make change and make everyday Election Day.

-Stavros Halkias

at mile high, we're on the air!

justin — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 17:13:50 -0700

We're live on the air from Mile High Stadium, home of the Broncos, and home of Obama for tonight. Trying to put up a picture of our view, but my wireless connection is sooo slowww that I don't think that's gonna happen. Sitting next to Lea Gilmore, while she broadcasts via cell phone. Marc is down on the field with the Maryland delegation, or might be actually looking for a quieter place to be on the air from. Someone is giving a speech, but it's hard to tell who from here. You have a way better view from home, I'm sure..

So, tune in on WEAA 88.9FM. We'll be on from 8-11pm EST, the last night of our week of DNC coverage, culminating with Obama's speech.

Diana Veiga's reaction to Michelle's speech

CEM — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 09:03:47 -0700

I listened to Michelle Obama’s speech on the radio last night. Yes, I had to take it old school because I had to make an airport run. There’s nothing like listening to a speech on the radio, especially a speech of this magnitude. There I was driving down the highway and envisaging Michelle’s outfit, her hair & make-up, her gestures, the venue, the colors, the audience’s reactions. I depended solely on the cadence of her voice and my imagination to tell the story that was unfolding, the history that was being made.

Click "Read More" below!

I heard her speak of her father with respect, Barack with love, and her country with pride. I heard thunderous applause when Michelle spoke Hillary Clinton’s name and said Clinton had shattered 18 million glass ceilings. There was more thunderous applause when Michelle declared that she is proud to be an American. The speech was everything it was supposed to be: a loving and supportive wife presenting her husband to the nation, a professional woman diligently working to shed the angry black woman image, and reaffirmation in the reality of the American Dream.

I could feel the energy of the audience, pulsating throughout and beyond the venue, into the veins of everyone watching and listening. Michelle’s words were beautiful, moving and honest. And I figured that plenty of tears had been shed by people of all races and colors. Turns out I was right. My girlfriend called after the speech and said, “I was crying right along with the other women in the audience. Barack took Michelle out for ice cream. Black love does exist.” Yes, Michelle’s words touched different nerves for different reasons. My mother started crying when Michelle described Barack driving their daughter home from the hospital and promising to give her a father’s love he never had. My grandmother already had her tissues at the ready because after 82 years of being on this earth, of being jailed for fighting for civil rights, this moment was finally happening.

Michelle’s words were just the start of what will emerge from this convention. It felt like the audience was literally on the edge of its seats, holding its breath, waiting for more, pleading for more, desperate for more. More hope, more change, more unity, more peace, more, more, more of something else, anything else that is different from what we’ve had for the past eight years. That’s definitely an understandable feeling. Let’s just hope this momentum continues through November. Hopefully the best is yet to come.

-Diana Veiga

Diana Veiga blogs at http://5andapossible.blogspot.com

"Doing better this time around" by Dr. Mary Washington

CEM — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 11:56:09 -0700

Doing Better This Time Around

by Dr. Mary Washington

So here we are just hours before the start of the 2008 Democratic Convention. The candidates have been at it for over 20 months. When this all began Gallup Polls showed Senator Hilary Clinton as backed by 29% of national Democrats followed by Senator Barack Obama at 18% and former vice presidential candidate John Edwards at 13%. And today, the presumptive presidential nominee, Barack Obama leads presumptive, Republican Candidate John McCain in the polls and the electoral map. My, what a difference 602 days has made in the political life of this country and the lives of those of us fortunate enough to see it. However the tumultuous seas of change that the Obama campaign have been riding so expertly until now have appeared to calm as they approach Denver and some fear that the Democrats will fall short of the horizon. Democrats will need to show the Republican Party leadership and the public that all hands are on deck and that they are comfortable and confident with Barack Obama at the helm.

Click "Read More" below!

For nearly two years, regardless of their political affiliation, millions of Americans and indeed the rest of world watched the Democratic Primary contest that emerged between Barack Obama and Hilary Clinton. Millions more gave of their time and money because the energy and excitement generated by this clash of titans breathed life into an electoral process that had been deadened by the cynicism of pundits, valueless wars and hard times. Encouraged by change we could believe in, many of us made the decision to volunteer for Barack Obama because we were impressed by the candidate and were moved to action by the choices he has made time and time again throughout his life to defy expectation and defend the vulnerable. At the time, I personally believed that Senator Clinton, was equally convicted in her desire and ability to navigate the challenges facing our nation with intelligence, compassion and strength. I said to many of my friends, “choosing between Obama and Clinton is a good problem to have.” I believed that Obama had the ability to bring the best out of those around him—even his distracters. For the first time in a long time I enjoyed and learned something from the televised debates, keeping score as I have done in recent weeks during the Olympics between our favored team and a strong and worthy competitor. The level of discourse we had in that mid primary election cycle was unprecedented in my memory. I was proud of us.But something changed and a match that had such a brilliant start to a new way of doing politics devolved by the end to not be the shining moment for the Democratic Party that I had hoped. While I did not support those that looked for an early concession from Clinton before the last state had voted, I was disappointed that the desperation of the professional class of the democratic party sought to destroy what it could not control and did not understand. I was disappointed that they returned to the old school strategy of divide and conquer along the open wounds of race, gender and class in this country, that they returned too comfortably to the tactics that have lost high stakes campaigns time and time again and ultimately made my dream ticket (Obama/Clinton) an impossibility. The return to that common and belittling script also placed doubts in the minds of many and fed the prejudices of a significant portion of the Democratic base. How can Democrats find their way out of this sinkhole? I think Barack said it best in his New Hampshire “concession speech.”

“What's stopped us from meeting these challenges is not the absence of sound policies and sensible plans," he said. "What's stopped us is the failure of leadership, the smallness of our politics -- the ease with which we're distracted by the petty and trivial, our chronic avoidance of tough decisions, our preference for scoring cheap political points instead of rolling up our sleeves and building a working consensus to tackle big problems."

Denver we have a problem.

This week’s convention should not be simply about setting the stage for a Democratic victory in November. It must be about tending to the soil that provided such fertile ground for grassroots movements and organizing in kitchens and store fronts across the country. The words and action of the delegates and nominees must inspire us to claim our responsibility as citizens and residents of the United States of America seriously and to demand that we do better this time and for all time. So I will watch, listen and pray that a belief in and resolved for change that has been weakened by the fear and poor judgment of some of our candidates, the calculation of strategists and whispering of political commentary can be re-harnessed today and over the next 79. I’ve read and listen to all of Obama’s tide-turning speeches. They still give me goose bumps. Whenever the nation had doubt in his abilities or in his campaign, Barrack’s words and deeds set us straight on the task at hand. But this time, it’s going to take a village to right this ship, set us on a good course and in Shirley Chisholm’s words “demonstrate the sheer will and refusal to accept the status quo.” I and millions of others still stand ready to believe in the audacity of hope.

Until next time . . .

-Dr. Mary Washington

Dr. Mary Washington is a former candidate for delegate in Maryland. Dr. Washington received her Ph.D. is sociology from the Johns Hopkins University. She lives in Baltimore City and works as an Assistant Director for a Baltimore-based environmental education, stewardship and community revitalization organization She also helps people buy and sell their home as an agent for City Life Realty (www.cityliferealty.net).

It's Party Time! by Dr. Eric Durham

CEM — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 13:46:26 -0700

Okay GoodPeople,

It's time to get this party started! ...and by the way, let's have fun...it's a joyous occasion, regardless of what the Republicans and the critics have to say.

The Number #1 reason to celebrate with absolute fervor is that this convention will be of historical magnitude! Senator Barack Obama, who has already made history in a number of ways, will address yet another arena-sized audience who is eager to hear more about a "different type of politics." No matter how the Republicans try to spin his ability to draw large crowds as a weakness...please "party-goers" rest asssured that if John McCain was able to do so, he would! ...and besides what do the large crowds symbolize? An intelligent person would go beyond Obama's oratory...and find that Americans are actually hungry for sincerity and relief from the "trickle-down" economic policies of the wealthy.

Click "read more" below for the rest of this entry!

The Number #2 reason to party all night long is to witness the maturity and commitment of Senator Hilary Rodham Clinton. I believe that Senator Clinton will illustrate a strong and sincere commitment to the policies of the Obama Administration. I do not believe she is as involved with factions like "PUMA" (Party Unification My Ass) as the media might lead you to believe. During the primary season, Senator Obama pledged that she would be instrumental in his Healthcare Adminstration and I believe that there are other avenues for her to participate with dignity and comfort.

Reason #3: Joe Biden is the perfect co-host! He provides the perfect compliment to Barack Obama. He is seasoned, experienced with insider-politics, and a bit more unadulterated in his rhetoric. What you have in the leadership of Obama & Biden is a dialectical tension. As a rhetorical scholar, I understand that some of the best things are created from dialectics; rhetoric/language being one of them. Obama does not have a "yes-man" in Biden nor does he have a philosophical twin. (That in itself is quite refreshing when you consider the Bush/Cheney team and all of its cronies.) In Obama/Biden you have two men who will be honest with each other, and America, in the way in which they govern this country.

I'm looking forward to 1.) Michelle Obama's speech, 2.) Hillary and Bill's speeches, 3.) and, of course, Barack Obama's address (Thursday). I'll be providing commentary on a whole hosts of issues (media coverage, race, economics, "change", global perspectives, elitism).

Stay tuned....

-Dr. Eric Durham

Dr. Durham is a Professor of Communications at Morgan State University. He blogs as the Good Doctor at http://drericdurham.blogspot.com/ . Tune in to WEAA 88.9 FM Monday night at 8:00 pm to hear him join Anthony McCarthy on-air for three hours of live coverage of the 2008 Democratic National Convention.

Lea Gilmore - "Off to Denver"

lea — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 07:35:31 -0700

Off to Denver

by Lea Gilmore

In less than 24 hours, I will be on my way to cover the Democratic National Convention in Denver for the Center for Emerging Media (CEM) and public radio WEAA 88.9 FM. Wait, I need to say that once more: I am on my way to cover the Democratic National Convention in Denver for the Center for Emerging Media and WEAA! Forgive me, I had to say it twice so the enormity of it all could sink in.

Just for a bit of trivia here, did you know that the first ever Democratic Convention was held in Baltimore in 1832 where President Andrew Jackson was nominated? http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1996/conventions/chicago/facts/convention/index.shtml

Go and throw that fact out the next time you are sitting in Jimmy's having breakfast with the morning java crowd and watch them be impressed at your political acumen, or something like that.

Click Read More Below!

For we political junkies, and policy wonks, covering the National Democratic Convention is like going to the Major Leagues and being told you are going to pitch for The Yankees (maybe not the thing to say being the consummate Baltimorean I am). Or for we singer types, this is our debut at “The Met.”

All conventions have their drama. This convention? The word DRAMA should be typed in 50 font, caps and bold with underlines (I won't freak you out by doing so, but you get my drift.)

Will the choice of Senator Joseph Biden, Chair of the Senate's Foreign Relations Committee and thirty-six year veteran of the U.S. Senate, as Obama's Vice-Presidential pick (more on this later) usher in a much needed party unity? Will the mainstream press continue to fan the flames of dissension, and we continue not to notice that that is what they are doing? Heck, conflict sells. Will the Obama-ites acknowledge the Clinton supporters with the respect that is deserved and due? Will the Democrats be critical of Obama and his policies without being destructive? It is all yet to come.

CEM will be bringing you up-to-date progressive analysis of events. Let us be your one stop shop for timely information. We will be covering protests, topical roundtable events and seminars, talking with the Maryland delegation, blogging throughout the day and evening, and presenting live coverage every evening of the convention on WEAA 88.1 from 8pm – 11pm.

Now, please allow me to take a moment to get personal.

As a black American woman, this is one magic, unbelievable, breathtakingly amazing moment in time. I see Michelle Obama walk across the stage, passionately speaking to thousands, being handed flowers by a small child in Iowa, and even being a guest host on that gab fest “The View,” and I say to myself “this elegant woman just may be the Next. First. Lady. - wow.”

I have also had some moments of personal frustration (haven't we all) during this loooong campaign season. It really kills me when I hear pundit types state with authority that “all African Americans believe this about that...,” or “African Americans say that they want this to be that...” It's like one day all of us gathered around one enormous dinner table at Aunt Sarah's and decided how we all think about well – everything. In fact, this is just far from the truth and far from reality.

We are not a monolith and thank God for that. There are some African Americans who are not besides themselves with support for Senator Obama. There are some who actually voted for the other folks with pride and conviction that we need to respect.

But I feel safe in saying, that on August 28, 2008, exactly 45 years to the date of the Rev. Martin Luther King's life-changing “I Have A Dream” speech at the Mall in Washington DC, African Americans of all idealogical stripes, will be gathered around televisions, radios, and all forms of media that didn't even exist in 1963 to watch this African American become the Democratic nominee for the President of the United States of America. Even typing it gives me the chills. I was not yet born to personally witness Dr. King's brilliant, poignant and moving orations, but I will be in the house to experience history first hand this time. I wish to heaven that my dad, born a sharecropper and functionally illiterate until he was 30, and possibly the wisest and most politically astute man I have ever known, was here to be a witness with me. This event did not happen in his lifetime, but it happened in mine and my sons'.

So, even in some our hesitance to support Senator Obama's policies or politics, even when we doubt that any system could be truly fair to those who continue to scream for justice on Washington's deaf ears, we know and understand at a profound level that when Obama says “this is our moment...this is our time” it means so much to so many of us.

Yes, It is ALL of our moments and ALL our time.

We know that race and class are still powerful dividers in this land of ours, and we know that there will be folks who will never ever vote for a black man. Period. But one thing for certain, this country has made some serious strides to have this son of a Kenyon father and white American mother be just a few steps (still rather large steps) from becoming the leader of the free world.

And the world wants him. And yes, that matters. I travel often to Europe and live and work closely with everyday folks. This past March, I was staying in a small hotel in Brussels called The Hotel Mozart near the Grand Place This hotel was decorated with the most incredibly gaudy stuff (but still cool in a crushed red velvet kinda way) circa 1750. There were big gold framed paintings of Mozart and his contemporaries all over. And in between the paintings, there were huge posters saying “Obama for America!.” “Obama for President!” When I went to check-in, the owner heard my accent and immediately started talking to me about the election. “Obama gives us hope,” he stated. “I wish we could all vote for him,” he continued. The 60-something French tourist behind me joined in the chorus of “We need him for America and we need him for us.” So, even though this may be idealistic, for the past eight years these were not the kind of words I have been hearing. Believe me on that one.

This man with the that funny name that's just a bit too close to that other man's name (who we still have yet to find) was offering something to the world that the world needs as much as we do – hope.
Yeah, we know hope is not enough. But the absence of it is deadly.

I am still a healthy skeptic, but I am not swayed by these empty arguments such as “is he elitist?” “Is he rich?” “Will he be ready on day one?” Heck, they are all rich and went to the most elite schools in the world, and how do you gage if anyone is really and truly ready “on day one?”
We know that Obama must bring the goods. We must keep him accountable to the people who put him in the position he is currently in. We must make sure that he doesn't bend too much that he snaps his integrity and our belief in him at the same time.

I'm tired though and I am hungry for change.

I'm just tired of this war and the lies and more lies being quietly exposed around it. I'm tired of when someone is is given the “smart” label that that is actually spun by the great spinning machines as a fault. I don't want a president I can have a beer with, we see what that got us. I want a president who truly does believe that diplomacy works or at least gives it a try. I want a president that recognizes that an isolationist foreign policy is not the way to go in a world that has become increasingly global. I want a president that does not believe we need to “Americanize” the world, but in his or her own leadership represents what is best about a democratic political system, as well as be a serious vocal champion for human rights. I want a president who will not stack the Supreme Court with Justices who are ready, willing and able to wipe-out reproductive justice for a generation of women, after a prior generation of women fought so hard for us to legally own our bodies and make our own choices. This is what I hope for and so much more.

Maya Angelo in her poem “And Still I Rise” said to folks in her breathtaking poem:

Out of the huts of history's shame
I rise
Up from a past that's rooted in pain
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.

Senator Obama you are “ the dream and hope of the slave,” as well as the same for so many others – women, men, and children of all hues.

Now Mr. Obama, mean what you say, and say what you mean. We're listening.

I will see you all soon in Denver!

Thankful to be a witness: a guest blog from Diana Veiga

CEM — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 11:43:00 -0700

As part of our coverage for the 2008 Democratic National Convention, we're excited to bring you a series of posts from guest bloggers. We're thrilled to begin with Maryland Blogger Diana Veiga, who blogs over at 5andapossible.blogspot.com, which is a great group blog written by five young women (we'll be meeting another of their contributors later during the convention). Enjoy!

If you believe what the polls say, I am probably one of the few black people who is not ardently supporting presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama. When I mention my hesitation about Obama to an avid supporter (and they are all around us), I am often met with dropped jaws and disappointed looks. Apparently this is the black race’s one and only chance, so I better get on the bandwagon. “But what’s he going to do for us,” I ask them. “Girl, he’s not running for President of Black America, he can’t just cater to us,” they say. Perhaps. And then like any good believer would do, they “school” me on Obama’s credentials and end with, “and he’s going to change the nation.” We won’t go into the fact that when I ask how, I have heard some of the craziest responses, including, “We’re finally going to have a black angel on the National Christmas tree.” OK, that’s change I can believe in.

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So believe me, thanks to the media and the masses, I know this man’s life story and résumé. Abandoned by his Kenyan father. Raised in Hawaii by his white mother from Kansas. Spent his adolescence and college years struggling to find his identity. Harvard Law Review President. Turned down lucrative jobs and became a community organizer on the mean, cold Southside Chicago streets. Worked across the aisle as a State Senator of Illinois. And on and on. I get it. But something has never sat right with me. Maybe it was that I couldn’t see past the flowery rhetoric. Yes we can! Can, what? Change! Change, what? We are one America! In whose eyes? Maybe it’s because when it came down to policies, Obama and Hillary were essentially the same person. But thankfully he was able to stand apart because of his what? Rhetoric. Can’t knock the hustle.

This is not to say that I am not impressed with Obama. I am. He is charismatic, sharp and beyond brilliant. And he’s clearly a man with a plan. I mean let’s not act like any of this is happenstance. And it’s not that I don’t think that Obama is capable to lead this nation. I think he’s beyond capable. I just can’t buy what he’s selling. And maybe I can’t get into believing in one person that wholeheartedly. Of course I have already been called cynical. But I prefer to think of myself as both a skeptic and a realist who understands that all politicians (Obama included) no matter how noble walk that tightrope of sticking to their convictions and saying the right words to the right people to get elected.

However, having said all this, I can’t ignore or deny the phenomenon that is happening right now in my lifetime. This week Obama will accept the Democratic Party’s nomination for President of the United States. This is more than a monumental occasion for African Americans in this country. It’s powerful. It’s mind bending. It’s something many thought they’d never live to see.

My mother is from Selma, Alabama. She grew up during the Civil Rights era and she, her siblings and parents were literally bloodied and beaten in the fight for equality. They were on the Edmund Pettus Bridge on Bloody Sunday. My mother who attended high school in Montgomery was nearly expelled for participating in the Selma to Montgomery march. My grandparents were jailed multiple times. My great grandmother marched on the courthouse steps and finally voted for the first time at the age of sixty. She then voted for any and every local, state, and national election until her death. And so I understand what this moment means to black people, young and old, those who remember the arduous past, those who are hungry for a vibrant future, and everyone in between.

And so on Thursday, August 28, 2008, exactly forty five years after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his I Have a Dream Speech from the Lincoln Memorial, Obama will take center stage and accept his party’s nomination. It will be historical. Unprecedented. Groundbreaking. Breathtaking. And honestly, I too wait with bated breath. I with the rest of the black race, with the rest of the nation, with the rest of the world, plan to be on my couch, in front of my television captivated by the moment, hanging on to Obama’s every word. I will be smiling. I will feel proud. I will save my newspaper to show to my children and grandchildren. I mean I may be a skeptic, but I’m no fool. This might be a Halley’s Comet moment right here. Once in a lifetime. Or it could be just the beginning. A preview of what’s to come. Whatever it is, I’m thankful that I’m a witness to it all.

-Diana Veiga

Marc on Obama and Race in America

CEM — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 12:58:20 -0700

Last week I wrote a blog about Obama. I originally wrote in my essay that 30% of the people in America would not vote for a Black man for President. Jessica Phillips, one of my producers, challenged the stat, asking me where it came from. Well, I could not pin point the source, if there ever was one. Maybe it was an amalgam of things or that 30 odd percent of Americans would always vote Republican. There is an element in that number for whom it would be anathema to vote for a black man. But then again, I have met a number of traditional Democrats who have blatantly and without flinching said the same thing. So, why was that in my head?

This morning I was watching Fox News while I was working out at the gym. It is really the only time I watch that channel. I don’t watch TV much to start with. At any rate there was one time Bush right hand, yet to be indicted, slick as a slippery eel Karl Rove waxing forth on Obama. He commented that given the economic state of the nation, the war and the President’s poll numbers there is no way this race should be so close. He said it clearly showed that the American people had doubts and did not trust Obama.

OK, that may have some merit. Senator Barack Obama is not the be all end all for America’s future. He is a politician who wants to get elected, who could use more specifics, and has altered or nuanced his position in order to remain on top of the electoral heap. So, in that I am not sure how different he is from McCain other than public perception or media projection.

There is one glaring difference other than their political vision. RACE.

I know what the polls said but let’s look beneath the polls. Attitudes about race in America are more nuanced and subtle. They are subterranean and not spoken about in the open.

The New York times polls often cited also says, as Ball pointed out in his NYT column last week, that 16% of Americans think Obama will favor Black over whites and almost 20% think racial relations will get worse (that again could have many political interpretations and meanings). The poll also said that 48% of voters oppose any preferential treatment for minorities. Now that is striking and deserves greater exploration.

A third do not know or work with someone who is Black, a quarter think America is not ready for a Black president, more than a quarter feel they have been discriminated against because they are white and 27% say too much is made of problems facing black people in America.

OK, so maybe I have no scientific or polling evidence to say what I almost wrote last week, but something is going on here. Race is a reason a majority of Black folks will vote for Obama and why a deeply significant number of White people will not vote for Obama whether they are open about it or not.

We are not in a post racial world; people and institutions are not color blind. It is not really more nuanced but it is more complex. It involves wars of class and generation in the Black world, as well as changing attitudes about race in younger generations. Race in America is beyond black and white and is Mexican, Latino, Asian, immigrants, and it is still in white America wrestling with itself and our collective national legacy.

Maybe we are in a perfect moment to have a really different and open look at race and ourselves as a nation. It won’t be in our schools or our churches; they are mostly made up of one race or other. Won’t be in the media, much too substantive not to mention frightening for their bottom line, which is not our well-being.

Where? I don’t know. Maybe we will have to start it together.