Nov 11, 2008 - 6:00 PM
This is a post for the Youth Media Blog-a-Thon hosted by Youth Outlook and Wiretap. This month's topic is, fittingly, the election. Now that we have elected a new president, Oh Dang! contributor La Toya Tooles explains what our next steps should be.
Come Jan. 20, we will have a new president. One that, in spite of, or maybe because of his ethnicity, has been able to recharge the American people and create “hope” for “change we can believe in.”Senator Barack Obama is now President-elect Obama.
People of color arose on Nov. 5 feeling different. It seemed as if birds chirped in harmony, neighbors greeted one another in victory, and in a city like San Francisco, the sky was a crisp, clear blue. People of color felt like they now owned a part of America. I, as an African American woman, felt a sense of validation as an American citizen. The feeling was best articulated by Whoopi Goldberg on The View: “Suddenly last night, I felt like I could put my suitcase down, finally.”
Not everyone who voted for President-elect Obama is a person of color. All day on the 5th, I kept thinking, and saying, “kudos white-folks” because it tells me that they wanted better for this country and they didn’t let the fact that Obama was half-black hinder their decision.
Black people, old and young, celebrated the realization of Martin Luther King Jr’s dream. Indeed, Obama was elected for the content of his character, his politics, and not for the color of his skin.
These last few days have been a time of hope. But the last eight years have been a time of bitterness and fear. And because of this bitterness and fear, the American people have been watching the Bush administration very closely. We don’t let Bush say anything or do anything that we don’t like without comment.
My charge to all American people is that we continue looking closely at our government. Nay, that we look even closer at our government. Let us not look at Barack Obama’s administration as God-sent, but let’s make sure that he delivers what he said he would deliver. President-elect Obama has preached hopes and changes to us. Let’s help him make that happen. Let’s keep voting, let’s keep speaking out, and let’s voice our opinion. Don’t just be glad about the president, but set your sights on the senate, the house, the governors, and the city councils.
The world is waiting to see what happens in the next four (hopefully eight) years. The world is not only looking at our president, they are looking at all American people.
Do your job America. Be diligent.
La Toya Tooles is single, loves short walks in the park, watching movies, sharing her opinion with anyone who will listen, and being right all the time. She is greatly invested in journalism and local politics. Her favorite color is green and she really likes Tudor roses.
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