America the Beautiful

Remarks of President Elect Barack Obama
Tuesday Nov 4, 2008

"And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of the world - our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down - we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security - we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope."


Obama is the new president of America.

The first black man, and the first American politician I, along with most of America and the world, have been excited about in a long time. I don't know much about politics, and frankly I don't really care most of the time, but something about this man just drives the cynicism and apathy right out of you, just hearing him speak and hearing about him.

My roommate Alissa made an Obama cake (this was a multi-racial cake - chocolate cake with half cinnamon and half coconut frosting), and we all stayed up for good portions of the night (although me probably the smallest portion, I knew Obama would win anyway). So I woke up to the sound of the TV at 6 AM and he won!!!!

Since the first time I have come to Egypt I have wished to God that I was capable of white lies and could just say I was Canadian, every time I utter "Amreeka" as my country, feeling ashamed and wincing a little in anticipation of the reaction. Very few people outright condemn me for being American, but its always kinda like, "O ok, we can like you as a person, but your country sucks, and because you have real elections there, its kinda your fault an idiot is in charge of your nation and has screwed the world over."

But then, the day Obama won I dressed in Red, White and Blue (subconsciously, I didn't realize until I was leaving), I picked up an Obama sticker at my Arabic class and wore it proudly. Every inquiry about my nationality I now relish the opportunity to proudly state that I'm American and discuss Obama. I received congratulations from my entire non-profit office, I was like the celebrity of the day, with a constant cycle of people coming through to tell me how happy they were. I attempted to make my students listen to his speech in class, gave the printout for homework, and read it myself on the metro.

I cried... in the metro, in Cairo... about a political speech....

And I am beginning to see America, somehow more clearly from the outside (this was called the exo-something view in Anthropology). When all the people, none of which are American, in my office, had to tell me how excited they were about Obama as the new American president. When I picked up an Egyptian newspaper with Obama as the cover story (translation of headline: "Obama improves the book of American history"). When I miss all the little things I used to be able to do and get and experience in America. When I hear Obama tell us, "we as a people will get there."

And last night, I went to stay with my adoptive Egyptian family for the night only to be shown the one year immigration visas that a brother, his wife, and their two year old daughter have for the U.S. They are almost bouncing around with excitement, while the mother cries. This Visa means hope. The hope that Obama talks about really is what we are. America is a symbol. It is a chance, an opportunity, an ambition, and and undying hope. We are a child of a country made of immigrants, and we are still hopeful, after how many stories of failure.

This country is still the reason why two Egyptian women in this family sold their personal gold so that they could try this opportunity. The economy in the U.S. sucks, these people know approximately three words of English, they will have no money to start with, and America is not so kind to Middle Easterners, or immigrants at all, but maybe now, things will change, anything seems possible now,and God goes with them.

But then I have hope, and I try to stay excited with them because no one would turn this opportunity down. Money and work and a new life. The American Dream is tugging on them, and this is our strength, "that while we breath, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes We Can."

And tonight I watched American Beauty, about the overwhelming beauty that overflows the most mundane of lives. How we push each other away and live in misery, but I have often thought this as well, there is too much beauty for us to really even see, we would be blinded if we opened up our eyes enough to take in all the light. Our hearts would burst from the beauty of a single moment if we truly comprehended, so we must protect ourselves. And the pain and the beauty of our nation, in all the tiny little details that I miss, its there.

America the Beautiful.