An Historic Day

In less than half an hour our nation (USA) will undergo a change of presidents.  As everyone knows the 44th president will be Barack Obama, a man of color. The first man of color elected to the highest office in our country.  Whether you voted for Obama or not, whether you agree with his politics or not, his election and inauguration are historic. As Americans we should recognize and celebrate the historic nature of January 20, 2009.  We are far from a totally equitable society, but we are further along the path toward equality than 100, 50, 25, or even 10 years ago. Over the past weekend I pulled up online the video of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I have a dream" speech.  Aside from the tremendous talent Dr. King possessed as a speaker, the substance of his speech laid a foundation of words that "we" as a nation are still building on. I enclose the word "we" in quotes to emphasize that all of us, human beings of every color, are building on Dr. King's dream of equality.  Recently my family and I visited Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown, Virginia. On our visit to the "Historic Triangle" I was struck by the language of freedom and equality with which our nation began juxtaposed against the reality of slavery and inequality that was the norm in our fledgling democracy.  The words "all men are created equal" are famous in our founding documents.  I don't know how Dr. King looked on these famous words. I don't know if they inspired or grieved him.  I do know that as I look at them and hear the word's of Dr. King crying for equality my heart is cautiously optimistic.  I am optimistic that we can indeed learn to view one another based on our intrinsic value as human beings created in the image and likeness of God, not on any external, whether it be color, gender, socioeconomic status, etc.  I am cautious, however, to realize that equality is not always easily defined, understood, or accepted. I hope that we can learn equality and live equally.  I know Obama's election and inauguration do not solve everything, but I trust it gives us a realistic sense of hope. Hope for all Americans, of all races, hope for an America that no longer has a racial problem.  Hope for a nation that views all men and women as truly created equal.  There are so many other problems, many of which we can solve, if we unite in purpose and no longer judge one another by the color of our skin.