There is neither need nor reason to hold back. This is a moment for celebration.
I set to the side for the moment, as I believe we are entitled to, the challenges that await president-elect Obama. I set to the side, as well, the challenges he put before us, the people, in his victory speech in Grant Park. I want instead to focus on images drawn from this extraordinary moment, the moment when a bitterly contested campaign came, at last, to an end, and when we as a nation, as a people, entered a new time.
Nothing became John McCain more than the grace of his concession speech. Would that he had interrupted those in the crowd who chose to boo the mention of Barack Obama’s name, had told them they were plainly missing the very point his speech so elegantly made. Would, indeed, that he had waged his campaign with even a portion of the graciousness with which he ended it. But in the end, his speech was not only a lesson in generosity, in large-heartedness; it was a lesson in patriotism. John McCain invoked and evoked an America to be proud of, and in his offer to support the new president he earned our respect and admiration. He said more than the occasion required, and we are all in his debt. John McCain: patriot, healer.
During the run-up to Obama’s Grant Park speech, the camera panned widely over the 150,000 people who were gathered there, in a park where, as a student at the University of Chicago, I spent many evenings on a blanket with friends, listening to folk and classical music. Grant Park, where in 1968 the Democratic Party was undone, angry young people in violent confrontation with the Chicago police. And as the camera roamed the throng, it lingered for a long moment on Jesse Jackson, tears streaming down his cheeks. Only a hopeless cynic could think those tears of self-pity, tears for what might have been. No, they were tears because suddenly, transformatively, it is entirely normal to have a president of color.
Jackson was only one of the many people who were teary long before Obama appeared on stage, who became teary from the magnitude of the occasion. Mostly, the great moments of our lives, those moments we will remember all the days of our lives, come upon us unexpectedly. We did not know before he spoke how deeply moving Martin Luther King would be that day in Washington. We did not know the Berlin Wall would be torn down before it was. And, of course, we did not know of the assassinations — the two Kennedys, King and Yitzhak Rabin most prominently — before they tore us apart.
But here, though we did not know, not for sure, that Obama would win, we knew, could not not know, that if he did, we would be witness to a moment we would forever remember, a moment of genuine transcendence, the end of one time and the beginning of another. In the long sweep of history, America’s overture is now completed; the curtain rises. And all of us are on the stage. So, tears.
Some presidents rise to the occasion of their office; one thinks, in particular, of Harry Truman. Some presidents, for good or for ill, are larger than life; FDR, JFK, Johnson. (By that measure, Clinton remains a might-have-been and Reagan probably an actually-was.) I recall a night many years ago, perhaps during Bush I, perhaps during Jimmy Carter, when one of my daughters turned to me and asked, “Why can’t we ever have a good president?” and I realized that some presidents are smaller than life — and also that we must take care to induct our children into the glories of America as well as its glitches.
The glories of America were on brilliant display in Grant Park. Black and white together, young and old together, our nation’s embrace of diversity made real. That was the picture that must most have hit the people who were watching around the world, a picture possible almost nowhere else in the world, the portrait of a country a majority of whose citizens by 2050 or even sooner will be of minority background.
And then at last Obama himself. By now we know the kind of thoughtful and inspiring speech he is capable of giving, and it was that kind of speech he gave. Perhaps the most remarkable thing about it was what Obama chose not to say. The television reporters were almost obsessively preoccupied with Obama as the African-American president-elect. But Obama’s speech in its entirety made little reference to race. Let others, Obama seemed to be saying with his silence on the matter, focus on what it means that this nation has chosen to be led by an African American; I, Obama, have been chosen to lead a nation and to help make it whole. We know the improbability of Obama’s election, given his personal journey; little wonder that he really believes in change, is more interested in foreground than in background.
To his impending labor in the vineyards of the foreground he brings not only the experiences of a most unusual life and the lessons of a brilliant campaign but also the specific skills and habits of a community organizer. Among those skills and habits, listening carefully to others ranks very near the top.
We are those others. And he cannot hear us unless we speak up and out. There is no need to shout, much less to curse. Indeed, Obama made reference to the immaturity of our political discourse, and he got that right. If now we can work to bring out the very best in our new president, we will learn what community organizers already know: We will be bringing out the best in ourselves as well.
Can we do that, finally? Yes, we can.
The Forward welcomes reader comments in order to promote thoughtful discussion on issues of importance to the Jewish community. In the interest of maintaining a civil forum, the Forward requires that all commenters be appropriately respectful toward our writers, other commenters and the subjects of the articles. Vigorous debate and reasoned critique are welcome; name-calling and personal invective are not. While we generally do not seek to edit or actively moderate comments, the Forward reserves the right to remove comments for any reason.
When Hank Greenberg Met Jackie Robinson
Reconsider Decision on Rabbis and Intermarriage
Ultra-Orthodox Men Ditch All-Black Attire as Fashion Trumps Tradition
Israel's Shas, Right-Wing Kingmaker Party, Takes Sharp Turn to Left
Is Steven Hawking’s Decision To Boycott an Israeli Conference Boon to BDS?
Copyright © 2013, Forward Association, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
You've successfully signed up!
As happens all too often in Leonard Fein's articles, this article as well is not at all analyzing any aspect of Jewish life. Again, the message, very strangely, is that just being an American is a type of Jewish identity. It's really a pity, since obviously Mr Fein must have some Jewish insight about the presidential elections - an insight wherein the word "we" means "we, the Jews". It is absolutely amazing that a person like Barack Obama has been elected the new president. The whole world is absolutely enchanted by his meteoric success (and by his captivating personality) - kol ha-kavod! However, although he is the first Afro-American president, still it should be clear that his background is not exactly the typical Afro-American story. He is not the product of the sociological reality resulting from the difficult story of slavery and the struggle for civil rights. He is the son of a foreign student whom he hardly knew, having been raised by his mother's family. That's an entirely different sociology. The title of this article ("A New Beginning") is not realistic. At the end of Mr Obama's presidency (in four years or in eight years from now) it would be legitimate to analyze events and changes - and only then conclude there had been a new beginning (or not). Most likely, his presidency will mark a kind of continuity. Society is very complicated, and its trends and directions are ongoing phenomenons. New beginnings and revolutions are a rarity. Finally, a Jewish angle, if I may (since Mr Fein and all the comments so far seem to think that there is no Jewish story here). The most important challenge of Mr Obama from our perspective is the threat from Iran. If the Iranians complete their atomic weapon, a very dark cloud will hang over the destiny of our people in the Land of Israel. Mr Obama is on record as one who understands the enormity of the danger. Let's hope for his total success.
I'm confused by Wayne's post. He takes "offense to your making him so eloquent after his loss." That's a bad thing. OK, can someone at Forward change from talking about the "grace of his concession speech" (I guess that's eloquent) to "McCain made an ass of himself." So Wayne can be happy. Yes, it's that damn liberal "hypocracy" (is that like hypocrisy?) to not kick a man when he's down. How dare Mr. Fein (and you must be a liberal since you said kind things about Senator McCain) not bash McCain. Now it wasn't the 2000 election and the way Bush handled and "won" it that divided us. It wasn't the next eight years of the media's obsession with our divided red/blue nation. It wasn't the Bush/Cheney/Rove tactics that divided us. It wasn't McCain's grossly inaccurate constant trashing of Obama during the election that divided us. Nope. It was President-elect Barack Obama (should I throw in his middle name as if I'm making a point?). And the very fact that he was elected – voted in by the majority of the people of the United States of America – makes Wayne feel, “for the first time that I am ashamed to be an American.” None of the other stuff I posted above did. Abu Ghraib didn’t. Guantanamo Bay didn’t. Our plummeting education system didn’t. Just Obama defeating McCain. As far as McCain needing out support…? The man had no plans except cutting taxes. Every other answer was ridiculous: (economy) “I know how to fix it”; (war) “I know how to win; (terrorists) I will defeat them. No plans, only attacking Obama. If two people are running and one talks of plans for the future and the other one attacks the other guy, who do you vote for? “Typical Liberal hypocracy.” Really, one wonders if you even know what a liberal is. Oh, and BTW, Obama took it 53% to 46% I didn’t even vote for Obama (don’t really trust the Democrats or Republicans), but you don’t hear me kvetchin’ like a little girl. Of course, he was a WAY better choice then McCain. Now go post your spiel again.
As a McCain supporter, I take offense to your making him so eloquent after his loss. You either supported John McCain, or you didn't. Those who didn't gave me the privledge to say for the first time that I am ashamed to be an American. This election did nothing more than divide a hurting country. This was the last thing we needed. Obama supporters clearly have their priorties in left field. And winning a vote by a 51% margin is no big victory, especially when you take into account that 25% of Obama's vote came from voters who were angry with Bush. So please show some respect and retract your words about John McCain. He needed your support before the election was called, and not after it. Typical Liberal hypocracy.
Wayne Masters, you're now a sad shadow of a time passed. Get over it. If Obama is not your president, than American is not your country. Maybe the election did divide us, but it's over and we're all Americans today. Face it McCain ran a dirty race and he'll pay the price for that- as Palin would say: "That's a fact, not a negative attack!"
Pere, I'm glad that you recognize that this divided the country. Conservatism is far from being "old" as you put it. In my opinion, McCain should recall his concession to demand a proper vote count. Verify the votes to make sure Acorn and Obama were playing by the rules. America is my country. It is not the country of Marxist Communists that think that they are going to change things. These people are sadly mistaken. As I said, half of the country feels this way, so it is people like yourself that need to grasp that concept.
Obama caused a tingling in my legs. I then recognized the feeling as sciatica
Wayne, I don't mind that you are upset or even that you double click on the "Post Your Message" bar forcing me to look at your comments twice. What does concern me is your spelling of "hypocracy", it is with an "i" and not an "a", thus hypocrisy. It appears that somebody needs a vowel movement. Stay Cool, Big Eye
Yehuda There is a Jewish angle to this article. Leonard Fein hopes that Obama will adopt the tough love approach to Israel. The tough love approach means restoring diplomatic relations with Iran while imposing economic sanctions upon Israel. It would mean accepting Iranian nuclear weapons and Israeli nuclear disarmament as a quid pro qo for an Iranian US detente. It would mean division of Jerusalem and allowing Qassam missile launchers on the Temple Mount. It would mena ceding the Golan to Syria without any sort of diplomatic relations (especially since Syria is a vassal state of Iran). It would mean arming Egypt with the newest US weapons. These ideas are likely more radical than Obama has in mind, but remember what former Haaretz editor David Landau said to Condi Rice-it would be his wet dream for the US to rape Israel.It may be Mr Fein's wet dream as well
To Jeff Cohen: Your "interpretation" of Mr Fein's Jewish angle in this week's article is quite obviously unfounded. You are simply expressing your own agenda, and in your imagination you are claiming that Mr Fein has stated his "position". I've read Mr Fein's article quite carefully, and unfortunately he does not have a message or a point of view that would indicate that a committed Jew is speaking or that this article has any Jewish agenda. He mentioned the murder of Rabin - the only very slight hint that this article was meant for the Jewish press - but essentially the article was written as if the reading audience is the general American public. It remains a mystery to me why Mr Fein feels that it is his duty to contribute weekly articles to this newspaper that are not raising any Jewish issue or any Jewish perspective on events. It is equally mysterious why the editor of the Forward would continue filling up the newspaper with articles and viewpoints that appear in the Washington Post or in the NY Times. Indeed, I read the NY Times to get a view from the American perspective. Likewise, whenever I want to see opinions and viewpoints from the Arab world, I read Al-Ahram or Tishrin or Al-Quds. However, whenever I want to see opinions and viewpoints from the American Jewish experience, I read the Forward. All too often, quite sadly, Mr Fein lets me down.
Yehuda I agree with you that this particular article has no distinct Jewish angle.I based my opinion on the summation of his previous articles, in which Mr Fein expressed his conditional love of Israel