A Moment in Time

There are moments in time that are just that, a blip on the hands of time. Then there are those moments in time that make history, and sometimes even change the course of history.

On the 20th of January, we all witnessed a moment in time that definitely made history. For the first time, an African American was sworn in as President of the United States. Who would ever have believed this could happen 150 years ago, when most black people in this country were still slaves? A war was fought over slavery so that all African Americans, and in fact, all Americans could become free. In fact, who would have believed it even after the Civil War was over. Even though all Americans were supposedly created equal, blacks still could not vote. Neither could women of any color! We might have all been free, but that still didn’t mean we were free to help choose our destinies.

Even 50 years ago, how many of us ever thought we would see the day when a black man could be elected President? Fifty years ago I was attending the first white high school in the South to become integrated. I can’t imagine that any of the Little Rock nine could fathom such a leap in their lifetimes. Yet here we are, 50 years later, not only electing a black to run our country, but electing a black man over a white man who had been a war hero. That speaks volumes about how far this country has advanced!

This election has made me more proud to be an American than anything that I can recall in my lifetime. Not only have we elected a black man, but we elected someone who had to work hard to get where he is. There was no silver spoon handed to him when he was born, unlike the previous president and many others before him.

Our new president is intelligent, principled, compassionate, and committed to improving the lives of all Americans. He’s a loving husband and father who appears to really know his children and their needs, unlike many of today’s fathers who opt out of a close, personal relationship with their kids.

So does race matter anymore. I know some people to whom it matters a great deal. They proudly announce that they would never vote for a black, no matter how smart, or his qualifications or how honorable his intentions. I have to say that I feel sorry for them. Many of these are the same people (mostly male) who would also never vote for a woman. They keep their minds as closed and prejudiced as they’ve always been, denying that the world has changed. They refuse to acknowledge that both women and blacks can be better educated than they. Their forefathers were the men who refused to allow women to vote before 1920, when women were finally granted a say in who should lead our communities, states and nation. Even as generations come and go, some people brought up on large doses of white male superiority never change.

The right of blacks to vote took a long time to be granted, as complicated voting laws and poll taxes prevented many from exercising their right to vote. Finally in the 1960s, full voting rights were granted to every American citizen after poll taxes were eliminated and voting laws were simplified.

I still can’t picture a color-blind society, where any intelligent, principled, qualified man or woman, no matter their color or religion, can become President. Hopefully, voters will become more thoughtful about why they vote for a particular candidate, and stop letting color or sex get in the way.

Barack Obama has one other endowment besides intelligence, experience, and high principles. He can inspire people, including young voters who have never been known to vote in large numbers in the past. He’s passionate, and that comes across in his speeches. Without the hope that he inspired for a nation weary from a terrible economy and two wars, I have to wonder if he might have prevailed this time?

It’s very unlikely that he will be a perfect president. No one is perfect. And already, the Republicans are fighting him on his solution for the economy. They want the same old thing the previous administration championed—lower taxes for businesses. In case no one noticed, that didn’t work! While I agree that some tax incentives should be offered to small businesses to encourage them to hire, such as offering a $5000 tax credit to any small business (under 100 employees) for each new, full-time employee that it hires. The government’s help with paying for new employees can be a huge incentive for small business owners who might not think they can afford to expand.

Why don’t I believe that the same incentive should be offered to big companies? Because small business has fueled the job growth in this country since the 1980s, and that is where continued growth lies. Large companies tend to be inefficient and less responsive to the market, as proven by automakers that have faced huge losses all while paying their top executives huge (unwarranted, under the circumstances) salaries. And if the same break was offered to large companies, they would likely rehire people they’ve laid off, claiming the tax credit as a way of letting taxpayers help fund their continued follies. If we really want to encourage job growth, tax credits have proven their worth in the past and could be effective again. And again, small businesses offer our greatest hope for the future.

People voted for change, and with the same old Republican guard in place in Congress, citizens need to make their voices heard in Washington to ensure that change takes place. Tell them that you know their way has not worked. Give the new President a chance by supporting his ideas, and make sure your representative in Congress knows that you want change and you want it now. I know that our economy, and indeed, our democracy may not last much longer unless drastic measures are taken, and the sooner the better!