Where were you when Obama received his party's nomination?

I watched Obama’s acceptance speech last night at Vox Populi in Boston, among about 300 other supporters, politicos… and those obvious few who snuck in for the free booze.

Funny, I never thought I’d see the day when the patrons of an entire bar shut their mouths and glue their eyes to the TV for a politician. Last night I looked around the room and saw nothing but saucers – everyone eagerly awaiting Obama’s next word.

As far as the actual speech went—well, I was really hoping to be moved to tears the way I was when Michelle and Biden spoke. In the end, though, talking family values wasn’t Obama’s mission last night (and that’s the stuff that makes me all misty-eyed). He needed to outline a clear plan for how he will make change a reality, and he did just that, point by point—from the economy to the war in Iraq to civil rights. I also thought it was really smart of him to address the “where’s the money coming from” question head-on. No dancing around the issue: his plans will take money, and he has accounted for the source of every penny.

After last night, no one can say that Obama doesn’t have clear strategies in place for executing on his dreams for this country.

On a more personal level, I found this part of his speech particularly inspiring:

We may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country. The reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural Ohio than for those plagued by gang-violence in Cleveland, but don't tell me we can't uphold the Second Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands of criminals. I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to visit the person they love in the hospital and to live lives free of discrimination. Passions fly on immigration, but I don't know anyone who benefits when a mother is separated from her infant child or an employer undercuts American wages by hiring illegal workers. This too is part of America's promise - the promise of a democracy where we can find the strength and grace to bridge divides and unite in common effort.

The "inherent good in us all" message was one that Obama incorporated in his campaign early on, but one that I haven’t heard in recent months. I’m really glad he’s gone back to it, because this idea is truly powerful. And no one can really refute this message without sounding like a total sleaze ball naysayer.

But let me take a step back. Because last night was bigger than words.

I haven’t lived through too many “I was _____ when _____ happened” events. My parents have tons. I have a few. I was in class on my second day of college when the planes crashed into the World Trade Center towers. I was on the phone with my dad, listening to him say, “Ryan, turn on your T.V. immediately, you won’t believe it—all the people drowning in New Orleans are Black” when Katrina hit.

Now I have another. I was at a bar in Boston, standing next to one of my favorite people in the whole word, my heart racing, my hands clapping, my eyes sparkling, when the first African-American man accepted the Democratic Party’s nomination for president of this country.

Wow.

Related: Obama wrapping it up, my grandparents would have been so proud

Comments

[CNKeach]

I was at the "March on Washington" and heard MLK's unbelievably uplifting speech. That night at the Bohemian Caverns nightclub, I sat right in front of John Coltrane as he played -- well, you know.
I was taking a mid-term at Howard University when someone burst into the room yelling,
"President Kennedy has been shot."
"Where?" I asked,trying to gauge the seriousness of his injury).
"In Dallas," the someone answered.
I was sitting in my living room in Newton Upper Falls, Mass. listening to some high-brow show on the radio which was interrupted with the announcement that MLK had been murdered.

There were so many more -- Malcolm, RFK, John Lennon -- that I stopped noting where I was when "it" happened.

But now, I DO indeed note, this occasion -- Obama's official nomination and subsequent extraordinary speech. When I think about my grandparents, I wonder if they would even be able to wrap their heads around what has happened. My father's father was born in 1863. Things have changed so much from what they grew up, lived, and worked in.

Now let us hope that the change leaps even further, to the conclusion that I believe so many of us yearn for -- an end to these hard hard times, to Obama's election.

Nikki

[John]

I recall having heard Colin Powell had incredibly high ratings that suggested, had he run, that he would have been a strong favorite. He chose not to.

Would your heart be racing, hands clapping, eyes sparkling, if an African American was nominated on the Republican side?