My ancestors came to this nation on a dirty, cramped boat. They came because the potato crop had failed, and they needed food. They needed life and liberty. They needed Hope.
When they came, they met poverty, hunger, and adversity. They met with employers who posted signs that read "No Irish Need Apply". But they kept on striving. They had Hope.
48 years ago, one of us was given the highest honor any mortal man can have: to lead the United States of America. An Irish Catholic kid from Brookline, Massachusetts was elected President of the United States. He had his failings, and his moral faults. But he stood for equality, justice, and freedom. Though he was struck down as a young man, his flame still burns in Arlington, and his Hope still lives.
Barack Obama's ancestors came from very different places. They came, from Africa and Europe, from Kansas and Kenya. They strove and persevered. They needed life and liberty. Above all, they Hoped.
What was the Hope of John F. Kennedy and Barck Obama? What gave them so much strength in the face of so much adversity, and kept them going when all seemed impossible? It was the promise that some truths are self-evident, that all men are created equal, that we really are endowed with certain unalienable Rights. It was the faith that this is a nation with a government of the people, by the people, for the people, and that this reality will not perish from this earth. It was the strength that comes from knowing that we have nothing to fear but fear itself. It was the Hope, that Yes, We Can.
How will history remember this night? How will we tell our grandchildren about how the Irish Catholics in Boston and the Blacks in Chicago, the Hispanics in Florida and the Asians on the West Coast, and even Anglo-Saxons in the Commonwealth of Virginia, the capital of the Confederacy, all stood up and said "Yes, We Can"? We will remember that Tonight, our nation accomplished something incredible. It's longer-lasting than the victory in World War 2. It's bigger than putting a man on the moon. The wall we tore down was stronger than the wall that Reagan defied. We looked at an entire race of people in the eye, we spoke to a continent we had wronged for so long, we conjured up the ghosts that have longed for freedom since 1619, and we said to them, "Yes! You Can! You can Hope too!"
I have never been more proud to be an American. May God continue to bless our great nation.
About Me
- Ryan
- Boston, MA, United States
- I'm originally from St. Petersburg, Florida. I live in Boston, MA where I attend law school at BC. I am married to the most beautiful woman in the world, and I enjoy reading, travel, chess, and racketball.
5 comments:
Beautiful post, man. It was really monumental to watch that last night. I'm in general excited how things turned out in the election... it looks like democrats overwhelmingly won, so hopefully we'll get to see some good things happen. Yet, they didn't quite win 60 seats in the senate, so there's still some room (I'm assuming, at least) for push back on the legislating side of the life issue.
"...if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land." - 2 Chronicles 7:14
May our land continue to be healed!
PS: I'm sure there are Bush "Advent" Calendars somewhere online :)
Thanks man. Amen! May our land continue to heal.
This is an absolutely incredible thing to witness. This morning in my Property Law class, our professor, who is a grizzled old seventy-something guy, started off class with "You know, I remember where I was when Martin Luther King was shot..." and then he just lost it. I think 95% of our class did too. He went on to say "To see students at Spellman lying on the ground crying tears of joy, to think about what we accomplished, to think that I lived to see this...you all are living at an incredible juncture in history.You will always remember this moment."
I'm actually kinda glad that we didn't reach 60. Being filibuster-proof sounds nice, but we're a nation of checks and balances. As liberal as I am (and you know I'm a pinko-commie by evangelical standards), I know my political philosophy doesn't have all of the answers. I hope the GOP doesn't completely collapse (though I think they may), because democracy needs a healthy opposition. The nation, congress, and indeed Obama, need a revitalized, ideologically consistent, issues-driven conservative party to provide balance. I can only pray that last night was a wake up call.
last night a wake up call? does this mean conservatives are going to stop calling me a nutjob? oh, and btw, all of you who voted for obama can go to hell. I was looking forward to a national ID card. jerks.
Lets just hope Obama continues to oppose that. HE does, he's aight by me.
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