i've been reading dkos for a long time but rarely post and have never diaried before. i have a thick skin (or skull, depends on who you talk to) so feel free to tear holes or berate my thinking.
anywho, to the matter at hand...
we had a minor crisis at work yesterday where i had to run up to one of our locations and do a quick patch of some software. while there, i talked to a dyed in the wool fellow democrat who happens to be working the event tonight at invesco, and had a very interesting - and disturbing - conversation.
the good news is that no matter what her feelings, she says she'll still vote for obama in november, but she was hesitant.
why? well, he's not american (debunked, which i pointed out to her rolled "i don't believe that" eyes).
and he's moslem (another debunk, another pair of rolled eyes "well, his dad was, so he is too...")
but her biggest reason? america hain't ready for a black president.
now i ask you - if not now, when?
i'm no historic scholar. i know just enough history to look dates up in wikipedia and cross check with other sources to verify.
but here are just a couple of things to think about...
the civil rights movement - which was well underway before rosa parks on the bus in 1955, and (at least on paper) ended with the civil rights act of 1964. is 44-55 years enough?
dwight eisenhower, in 1957, sent in the national guard to uphold the brown v board of education decision of 1954. is 51 (or 54) enough?
harry truman desegregated the military in 1948 with executive order 9981. is 60 years enough?
jackie robinson - the player who broke the color barrier in professional sports (or perhaps "white professional sports" is more appropriate), started playing for the montreal royals in 1946 (international league) and the Dodgers (major league) in 1947. is 62 (or 61) years enough?
the 15th amendment - which gave blacks (or at least black men) the right to vote (on paper) - was ratified in 1870. is 138 years enough?
the 14th amendment - giving former slaves citizenship - was ratified in 1868. is 140 years enough?
the 13th amendment - formally ending slavery - was ratified at the end of 1865. is 143 years enough?
the emancipation proclamation executive orders were issued between september of 1862 and january of 1863. while not perfect, they paved the way towards the ending of slavery in the united states. is 145 years enough?
and of course, the declaration of independence, signed in 1776, which enshrined the notion that We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. is 232 years enough?
i know i've glossed over huge tracts of history and there will probably be all kinds of "but what about...?" or "you forgot to mention..." from those folks in the back of the room. i'll leave that stuff to the 2-3 folks who will actually read this diary.