Change and the world changes with you

Sorry for the unexpected holiday. Who could have guessed New Year's Eve would take place in the middle of November this year?

That's exactly what it felt like in Atlanta at 11:00pm on November 4th. The entire city collectively exhaled and then exploded as Barack Obama became the 44th President of the United States.

If you’ve been following the blog, you can imagine how elated I was by President Obama’s victory. But what surprised even me was how overcome by emotion I was soon after the initial excitement wore off.

As he approached the podium to give his acceptance speech, it hit me all at once. Standing in front of America, ready to lead us all on a journey greater than any one can anticipate, was a man who looked like me.

While President Obama will be everyone’s President, his victory marks the beginning of an end to the ever present scrutiny of African-American men. This experience, though difficult to put into words, is something I have lived with my entire life; consistently being measured not by your character and often being discredited simply by the color of your skin.

Racism and prejudice in America has always had many faces. It whispers, it yells, and sometimes and most often, it says nothing at all. It is a look, a judgment, a reaction, or an inaction that has kept generations of people of color at a disadvantage.

Today those practices have lost some of their power. Today I am American. I am deserving of everyone’s respect. I am not a threat to anyone's safety or security. And most importantly, I am the person I have always been, that can no longer be ignored.

Thank you, President Obama, for being brave and strong enough to simply be yourself. Thank you for achieving your dream of leading the most powerful country in the world. And thank you America for believing in change.

Yes we can … Yes we did … and yes, this is only the beginning …