even though the polls were located in the lobby of my building, i was up early at 3am with the excitement of the upcoming election. unable to vote early because of my clinical internship, i've been looking forward to vote day for quite a while. i walked downstairs at about 5:40am; there were already 10 or so ppl in line. by 5:50am, the line reached down the hallway. by the time the i was called to the table to get my ballot, there was already 1-1.5 hr wait for those just joining the line! i finished voting by 6:20am (stacy didn't wake up with me, so he had to wait nearly 2 hrs to vote, lol!)
Barack H. Obama, the 44th President-Elect of the United States of America!
the crowd was electrifying. everyone was everyone's brother and sister, as the diversity of chicago flooded into downtown. chicago is known for its ethnic enclaves, but it didn't matter what side of the city or neighborhood you came from. we embraced each other like old friends. words cannot express the sensation of emotions that swept across me as i stood in unity with THOUSANDS of others in grant park. we hugged each other, laughed together, took pictures of one another. cheered and rejoiced together. the feeling of togetherness was...simply beautiful. and in chicago, nonetheless. a place where place pass each other on the street without eye contact, without speaking or acknowledging the presence of another. a place where senseless violence has claimed the lives of so many of our young people. a place where we came together PEACEFULLY to celebrate the election of our next black president. wow.
(yep, that's me with the sls and the blk power fist ;o) i just luv this pic!)
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