I'm a 65 year old white man and I've seen this whole thing play

[Road Scholar]

out.
I grew up in North Carolina in the 40's and 50's and I remember the "colored" bathrooms, water fountains movie theaters etc. At first, when I was a little boy, I didn't understand what all the fuss was about. Then, as I grew up, I thought it brought shame to America, and I was right. I saw John, Bobby and Martin taken away and it was easy to understood the rioting in Chicago in '68.
I never thought I'd see this day. I'm very happy about it, but I never thought it would happen in my lifetime.
I have come to this conclusion: Ignorance,indifference,incompetence and greed have always been our enemy, and they are always waiting for an opening. Today is certainly a red letter day in our history and I'm glad to have seen it. I_T

[JuniperLea]

1. Congratulations! You've seen us come full circle!

It must feel great...

[Road Scholar]

3. I really have. I can't wait 'till it's called.

:toast:

[JuniperLea]

6. Tomorrow's most popular post...

"Yes we did!!!"


:toast:

[Road Scholar]

12. Absolutely!!!!

:toast:

[roguevalley]

22. I know what you mean, In_transit. I remember sun down laws. Kids

should VOTE EVERY DAMNED TIME. They have no idea how awful it was once. I am glad I lived to see it.

[here_is_to_hope]

2. From a fellow TarHeel, great post!

I always hoped it would happen in my lifetime.
Its going to be a new day no matter what.

[TrogL]

4. I'm 53 and I saw most of it

...granted on TV as I lived across the river from Buffalo, N.Y. We watched US TV because we were too far from Toronto get proper reception of Canadian TV. We would also routinely go shopping in the US 'cause prices were lower.

I didn't see the race riots, but I could hear the sirens.

Over the years we watched the US fall apart as Republican administrations gutted the country. Under Democratic administrations we saw small gains in civil rights and environmentalism.

Now it's come full circle again.

[BrklynLiberal]

5. I am also grateful to have been able to see this day.

I did not grow up in the South, but shared a lot of the same national traumas.
I guess that there are two old "cliches" that we must always keep in mind....

"The price of freedom is eternal vigilance."
-- Thomas Jefferson

"All that is required for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing."
-- Edmund Burke

[Lex]

7. It must be as wild as watching Man walk on the Moon?

Unbelievable.

History in the making.

Thanks Dad :hug: for being such a good person and good role model.

[Road Scholar]

8. I think this will be much more of an impact on the world as

the first man on the moon. So much has happened in our lives, It's hard to imagine what can happen next.
I have a feeling that because of this election, it will be something good.

[classof56]

9. I'm a 70-year-old white woman, grew up in the Pacific Northwest and didn't

know about "colored" bathrooms, water fountains, back of the bus "stuff" until I was about 11 years old and took a trip to Dallas, TX to visit my mom's family. Even during the war, "coloreds" were few and far between in the Seattle area. Years later, in the early 60s, I was traveling from WA DC to Richmond, VA and along the highways were billboards for motels with the phrase "coloreds only". I was a bit shocked to realize that kind of racism was so blatant, but know now that the country was on the cusp of the civil rights movement and the times they were a-changing. It's clear now, as you pointed out, they have not changed enough. Obama is a first step, I too am hoping and praying, to a new and brighter future for all of us. Today is indeed a red letter one in our history, and I hope I'll live to see that brighter future come to fruition. My mother lived to be 96, so I've got a pretty good chance!

Peace and blessings to you.

[Road Scholar]

10. First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you,

then you win. Ghandi
Truer words were never spoken regarding this election.

[classof56]

16. Beautiful, I_T. Thanks again for words of encouragement.

Together we can make it happen!

[codjh9]

11. Right on, sir. I'm 50, so I didn't see quite as much as you have, but I agree, although I thought

we sure as hell deserved to have a black or woman (or black woman!) or Hispanic president, I wasn't sure when or if it would finally happen! I proudly voted for That One.

[budkin]

13. Awesome.

[Speck Tater]

14. I'm 63 and I grew up in a neighborhood with "undesirables".

Where I came from there were segregated neighborhoods for the three kinds of undesirables in town: Blacks, Puerto Ricans and Irish (yes, there were still places in the U.S. where Irish were undesirables in the late 40's and early 50's). I'm mostly Irish with a French great grandfather and a black great grandmother from Haiti. It wasn't as bad for me as for many of my friends, but I grew up knowing that discrimination is an ugly thing. I'm very fortunate that growing up my best friends were minorities, and I was never indoctrinated with racial distrust or hatred. We all got along together just fine. Kids just don't know any better. They have to be taught hatred. Someday I hope we live in a world where NO child is ever taught to hate.

[Road Scholar]

18. Because of this day, that day just moved closer.

[Lex]

15. I want to share this video with you.

"Crazy in Alabama" by Kate Campbell

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pytzg9BBRG0


Crazy in Alabama

I heard Odessa's mind was sick
That she was crazier than hell
The police caught her turning tricks
Down at the Blue and Gray motel
Odessa was the neighbor's maid
She had ten mouths at home to feed

They bussed her kids to Birmingham
And put her in the county jail
Nobody seemed to give a damn
They say a white man posted bail
My dad said not to breathe a word
I told my brother all I heard

And the train of change
Was coming fast to my hometown
We had the choice to climb on board
Or get run down

It was crazy there
Were grown men fights
Over segregation and civil rights
Martin Luther King and the KKK
George C. Wallace and LBJ
And when the National Guard came in
I thought the world was gonna end
It was crazy in Alabama

Down at the corner Dairy Dip
They sold soft ice cream for a dime
White people ordered from the front
The side was for the colored line
We all were told they had their place
Because they were a different race

We spent hot summer afternoons
At the public swimming pool
Where the privileged and the few
Played on their island of cool blue
Brown children
Watched outside the fence
It never made one lick of sense
But the train of change
Was coming fast to my hometown
We had the choice to climb on board
Or get run down

My momma yelled child get inside
Drew the drapes and locked the doors
We watched the marchers passing by
Felt the rumble heard the roar
They all held hands they sang and wept
And freedom rang in every step

Cause the train of change
Was marching through my hometown
We had the choice to climb on board
Or get run down

[Road Scholar]

20. Wow! Thanks for sharing. How appropriate!

[Demi_Babe]

17. Congratulations to you and all of us! This is a GREAT day!

[Shardik]

19. Well, you have me by ten years...

but I agree completely. Today is a historical day. It's the culmination of all the sacrifices made by so many in those turbulent years when people started making equality a reality rather than an ideal. Today is a great day to be alive for me.

[Shardik]

21. I have to kick this one more time

for all the "youngsters" out there!

:) LOL

[Lex]

23. kick n' rec

:kick:

[PatriotGames]

24. Very nice post. Thanks!

[OneGrassRoot]

25. Thank you, In_Transit. :) K&R n/t