Though we had to wait a few extra minutes, President Barack Obama is in the White House.
I attended a watch party at the Harlem Armory organized by the Democracy Prep Charter School. Thousands of charter school students, teachers and community members filled the historic armory.
I had first planned to watch the Inauguration at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture but after waiting in line for 30 minutes, we were told they had reached capacity.
As it turns out, Plan B was a better venue. Not only did I get to witness history with our future, I shared a table with Frances Brown and her 90-year-old mother Elretta Isler, who said, “It’s a good day.”
Frances added:
While we waited for the noon 12:05 p.m. swearing-in, the kids made signs, some of which read, “Obama rocks 2009.” The looks on their bright and eager faces told the story: change has come to America. Indeed, at the first sight of President-elect Barack Obama, the kids erupted.
Though Obama invites comparison to Abraham Lincoln, his inaugural address was far from Lincolnesque. Rather, it was a well-delivered, albeit prosaic, recitation of the “gathering clouds and raging storms” left behind by his predecessor (who will not be missed).
After eight years of secrecy, crony capitalism and mismanagement, these words were music to my ears:
The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works, whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public’s knowledge will be held to account, to spend wisely, reform bad habits and do our business in the light of day, because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.
Here are my takeaway lines:
Today, the hard part of “remaking” America begins. But I’m a firm believer in reinvention.
Folks, we’ve got work to do.
