The line was literally wrapped around the 2nd floor escalators and people were edging their way in hoping that by skipping a couple of people they would be able to guarantee themselves a seat. I remembered my past two plenary session experiences and I made sure that I would be at the theatre EARLY today. Yet, I still found myself at the tail end of the line. It was only 7:55 am. We weren't scheduled to begin until 8:30.
By 8:15 I finally reached the general entrance.
"Standing room only people. Please try to find seats if they are available on the upper levels"
Good luck with that.
There were no seats available on the upper levels. Determined to find a seat (after all I was going to be taking notes and taking pictures) I walked back down to the lower level and found myself again, not too bad off. Seated near the middle I was far back but still had a good visual of all who would be on the stage.
Saving the best for last, Senator Barack Obama was the last of the political candidates to take the stage and let me tell you, everyone in the audience and geared up and ready to hear him speak.
The first thing he said when he got to the podium was that he endorsed the National Urban League Opportunity Compact, the issues it focuses on and the policy proposals it puts forth for consideration. This envoked loud applause from the audience.
Listening to Senator Obama you can tell that when he speaks about working for the communities and on the communities to create positive change, it isnt just empty campaign rhetoric. He has spent many years of his life working on this cause and with the power of the presidency would continue to do so. His mission is to fight against an administration that tells the underpriviledged that they are on their own and that the government's goal is not to help them.
But how can he do this? He cant do this on his own. He cant do this with just a cabinet of supporters. Senator Obama needs our help and our support, our willingness to stand up, stand together and demand change. Put the pressure on and not let up.
It seems so simple. It seems so easy and yet, it isnt done. Definately, something to think about. Where are our priorites as a country? Mr. Obama brought this question up. We need to revamp the Justice System and perhaps appoint an Attorney General who believes in its mission and is not set on obstructing the system. The Justice System needs to be taken on so that less african american youth are held within its grasp. More preventive measures should be taken so that the destiny of a child would not be predetermined before he or she took their first steps or their future determined simply by the neighborhood they are born into.
When people ask whether America is ready for a Black president, I would like to reply that although my teachers have always told me that there is no such thing as a silly question, that right there is indeed a silly question.
America is ready for change. As citizens we are tired of being taken for granted while being written off as the apathetic crowd whose absence of engagement gave present and past administrations the carte blanche to create the havoc that we find ourselves in today.
If we werent ready for change, Senator Obama wouldnt be the popular front running candidate for the presidency that he is today. One interesting statement that he made was that if he won the presidency he would not only change the look of the white house and that position but that occurence would actually transform the nation.
Let that marinate in your minds for a minute.
If for the first time an African American was elected to the White House it would not just stop there. Those elected to the positions such as the US Congress, State Legislatures, County Executives and so on and so forth would experience a shift as well. Going back to Mr. Morial's statement in his keynote addres, communities of color are a force. We have the power to push for change and for once the change would be real, it would be visible and it would be palpable.
It truly was an amazing speech. The whole time the audience was relatively silent, hanging onto his every word. He just didnt appeal to the emotions of the audience but also stuck to facts, statistics and presented clear cut plans.
And that is all we were asking for. I think it was a job well done.
-Adaeze Udoji
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