History in the Making

Tonight,a freshman Senator named Barack Obama of Illinois will claim the Democratic Nomination for President of the United States of America.It is a tad bittersweet in every sense of the word.Senator Hillary Rodham-Clinton had the resume,the Washington experience,and former President Clinton's economy from the 1990s.But somehow Barack Obama tapped into a message of "change."Before the primaries started a friend and I joked about how Obama should just quit before the primaries even started.He was down by double digits in almost every poll before the process even started.Then the Iowa Cauces happened and the aura of inevitability that surrounded Senator Clinton was now gone. 

Im not going to criticize Senator Clinton.She has run a great campaign (she has gotten the most votes of any candidate that will finish second in a presidential primary).She has galvanized women,older voters,and ethnic voters like no other candidate before her.She deserves the admiration of every true democrat.She has spoken passionately about healthcare,foreign policy,and comprehensive immigration reform.Senator Clinton's supporters must be supportive of Senator Obama if he is to win the general election.Some things were said during the campaign that could prove fatal to Obama's candidacy.Senator Obama will have alot of work to do when the primaries have ended.Senator Clinton was a great candidate and a very engaging campaigner...Barack Obama proved to be better.

Maybe,it was something in the air or maybe the country was experiencing "Clinton fatigue."Maybe Barack Obama is destined to be President.Obama tapped into something that maybe we will never understand.When he clinches the nomination he will be the first African American to represent one of the two biggest political parties in history (President Harding apparently had some black ascentry but thats still an unsubstantiated rumor).As an African American there is a special sense of pride that exist regardless of rather or not I agree with Senator Obama.This is a huge evolution in American politics.50 yrs ago,Senator Strum Thurmond was running as a Dixiecrat.The party's platform was segregation today,tomorrow,and the day after that.African Americans were being bombed and marching on Washington during the 1960s.The Civil Rights Act passed in 1964 but blacks were still being discriminated against.The assassinations of Martin Luther King,Malcolm X,and Robert Kennedy would only serve to hurt race relations.All these events have served to set up this moment.Barack Obama is the manifestation of all these events.Rather they be bad or good these events have given us this pro-racial candidate that has captured the idealism that Kennedy and King both talked about.So every person regardless of gender,political id,or race should stand up and applaud tonight.America has made significant progress in regards to race relations...Look no further than the 2008 Democratic Nominee for President...Senator Barack Obama.