I don’t usually break off into celebration after an election, but man, this election was incredible.
And believe it or not, Barack Obama will be the next president of the United States.
It’s a little weird for me, a Japanese-American, to join the cheering African-Americans, around campus. Of course, I couldn’t take part in too much celebration at the dorms because I was working on the election story.
However, this new change of presidency means so much for minority groups everywhere. Martin Luther King, Jr. was right in his Birmingham speech when he said that he wanted equal rights for not just black people, but for all races.
Obama’s recent victory means so much for all Americans. He serves as an example to people of all races that anyone has the opportunity to become president. This includes not only African-Americans, but for Asian Americans, Latinos and every other community.
Most of all, his victory is a promise for change. Although Republicans don’t consider this change the right direction, I think it’s about time that the economy changed.
As an Asian American, I still struggled endlessly to even get hired for a part-time summer job. I don’t know whether I was rejected because of my race, but I’m certain that my Japanese heritage has probably turned off many potential employers. Many online job applications include oh-so-crucial questions analyzing my feelings as a Japanese American. Come on, this is old racial anxiety that shouldn’t matter anymore.
When the economy went bust, my chances of getting a job were nil. I had searched for a job the entire summer and I couldn’t get a hired for the life of me. By the time I was asked for an interview at Barnes and Noble in El Segundo, I was tired and said that I was willing to take anything that I could get.
Now that Barack Obama is president, though, change is coming. I anticipate that the economy will reach the end of the recession soon. I have no idea what kinds of changes he will make for “lower class” minority groups, but I think it’s about time that somebody helped every American out, and I think someone should help a poor, unemployed student such as myself.
I’d have to say, it’s about time that something changed. And after eight years with that “Dubya” idiot, America deserves positive change.
Let’s just hope that some head case doesn’t assassinate Obama. Believe me, I’m willing to act as a human shield to prevent it.
Jonathan Oyama is a senior journalism major and an assistant news editor for the Daily Forty-Niner.
I have read a number of opinion pieces saying how wonderful it is that an African-American was elected president. I think the real victory will occur when people will not think it is necessary to point out someone’s race. Voting, or not voting, for someone because of their race shows we are still not as “color-blind” as I hope we someday will become. Although I still have some concerns about my taxes being raised (he is a Democrat, after all), I think the Obama ticket was better than the McCain ticket this election and I voted accordingly.