There are those special moments in life. The birth of your first child, your high school graduation, a treasured moment spent with a parent as a youngster. Different for all of us, yet similar in the assurance that at that moment in time you know that you are exactly where God wants you to be. For myself, this was one of those times. But, perhaps more importantly, this was one of those moments for America. A transcendent historical phase in American politics and life, eloquently articulated in a forty-two minute oratory.
"With profound gratitude and great humility, I accept your nomination for the presidency of the United States."
On a warm August evening at INVESCO Field in Denver, Colorado, underneath a clear sky and in front of a crowd of 84,000 people of different races, religions, and even political affiliation - with an unprecedented forty million Americans watching on television - Senator Barack Obama uttered these words and began to outline what will surely be remembered as The American Promise. Forty-five years to the day after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. shared his dream with the world, Senator Obama's nomination as the first African-American to head one of the two major American political parties marks the clearest indication that American has awakened, and the dream is becoming reality. "[T]hat in America", in Senator Obama's words, "[our children can] achieve whatever they put their minds to."
Being an African-American man in my forty's, like Senator Obama, I was too young to participate in the Civil Rights movement. And though a few years younger I, like him, share the frustration of not being born in an era where I could contribute first hand to the struggle which exemplified to the world the African-Americans' strength of community and unwavering dedication to the pursuance of respect of our inherit human dignity. But it was reliving those moments - from Emmitt Till to the March on Washington to Bloody Sunday and beyond - with my mother narrating, while watching black and white television specials seen primarily during Black History Month and that of Dr. King's birthday, which inspired me as a young man to dedication to my community. My mother, Lorraine Patterson, like Senator Obama's mother, died of cancer at the age of fifty-three ten years ago. Yet it was inspiration from those remarkable women and that era which led both myself and Barack Obama to share the same Denver sky on this night.
Congressman Rep. John Lewis of Georgia (D), who marched with Dr. King as a young man and was brutally assaulted on the infamous Bloody Sunday, felt here was where he belonged as well. When asked what Senator Obama's nomination meant to him he said through tears, "This is one of the most amazing, unbelievable moments of my life. ...the struggle was all worth it. Tonight is another down payment on the dream."
Indiana Representative William Crawford (D) who has represented the 98th District since 1972, and was the state's co-chair with the late Congresswoman Julia Carson of the Jackson for Presidency committee, was asked whether there is a certain amount of pride being not just an American, but an African-American on this historic day. "Absolutely", he replied simply yet emphatically. "I've been a part of the struggle for the last 38 years to achieve and make real the American dream. Consider us the same as you consider anyone - by [our] merits and the content of our character, not just the color of our skin."
But the day was too large for just African-Americans to take pride in. The American Promise outlined by Senator Obama that caused 84,000 Americans of varying backgrounds to cheer, cry, hug strangers, and wave flags with renewed pride represents a return to the essence of the American spirit. "It is that American spirit - that American promise - that pushes us forward even when the path is uncertain; that binds us together in spite of our differences; that makes us fix our eye not on what is seen, but what is unseen, that better place around the bend."
I asked Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois (D), who introduced Senator Obama on Thursday and is widely credited with first encouraging him to run for the presidency, whether he felt additional pride in playing this role in history. After pausing a bit reflectively, he said, "I can remember a much different America than there is today. But, the fact that we are now this close, in this moment in history, really gives me a lot of faith in this country. That we can conquer even some of the prejudices that have torn us apart all these years and elect a man for the value of that person, rather than the color of
their skin."
As Senator Obama concluded a speech that will likely be reviewed and studied for scores of years, he reflected on what he called "our greatest inheritance." "It's a promise I make to my daughters when I tuck them in at night, and a promise that you make to yours. With his voice rising sharply he continued, "And it is that promise that forty-five years ago today, brought Americans from every corner of this land to stand together on a Mall in Washington, before Lincoln's Memorial, and hear a young preacher from Georgia speak of his dream. [I]n America, our destiny is inextricably linked. That together, our dreams can be one."
Shortly afterwards, as the thundering applause crescendoed, he was joined onstage by his and the Biden family amid a fireworks show which rivaled most Fourth of July celebrations. As streamers were launched, and orchestral music of booms and strings filled the stadium, the large screen captured an unforgettably adorable shot of Obama's youngest daughter Sasha and Biden's young granddaughter Natalie playing amidst the falling confetti. And for me, it was again one of those moments where I knew exactly where I should be. But it was no longer in Denver. It was time for me to get home and tuck ten month old Lorraine into bed - and tell her about The American Promise.