Election Night 2008: an eye-witness account
11.5.08

It used to pain me to see a black man cry. But as 125,000 Obama enthusiasts focused their attention on the Jumbotron in Chicago’s overflowing Grant Park, one man in particular caught my attention. It was author and journalist Roland S. Martin, whose jubilant tears streamed down this face. Martin’s outpouring of emotion was triggered by an announcement that would forever change the scope of the world as we presently saw it; “Barack Obama, has been elected President of the United States Of America.”

During this precious moment, the fact that America had endured one of the most grueling election seasons in history, had become a mere afterthought. Even the fact that I’d arrived at Grant Park at 5:50 a.m. to stake my position among a boisterous media gallery, barely registered on my emotional ricter scale. But it was the sight of Martin’s tears, coupled with those of Reverend Jesse Jackson, which poignantly captured the moment for me, immediately conjuring up thoughts of my parents.

My father Robert marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and was arrested on several occasions for his role in the Civil Rights Movement. My mother Naomi was also no stranger to the movement, as she had been shot at by military men sent to her Ormond Beach, Fla. neighborhood to bring order to marchers and protesters desperate for change.

I also thought of my parents when I saw Oprah Winfrey, Michael Eric Dyson and other prominent figures in attendance to support the first African-American to take the White House. The gravity of the moment has yet to fully sink in – and I’m not sure when it will – but having lived through this emotional moment, it is no longer an affront on manhood to watch another brother get misty-eyed.

After years of fighting for what they believed in, having been sprayed with water hoses, attacked by police dogs and lynched, their dream had finally been realized. Martin’s tears are my father’s tears. Rev. Jackson’s tears are my mother’s tears. And Obama’s historic victory belongs to them. In fact, Obama’s victory is a victory for us all. –gavin philip godfrey

Filed Under Politics |  
Posted By Billy Blog Thornton |

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