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Shallow Nation

November 5th, 2008 at 1:32 am

Video & Photos: Barack Obama Acceptance Speech Presidential Victory 11-4-08

Barack Obama delivers his victory speech in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois, upon being elected President of the United States, November 4, 2008

President-Elect Barack Obama delivered his acceptance speech before a cheering crowd of 125,000 in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois on November 4, 2008. With his historic victory, he has been elected the 44th President of the United States and the nation’s first African-American President.

The inspiring and emotionally moving speech reflected upon and surveyed America’s historic journey towards equality and inclusion while confronting the challenges that all Americans collectively face with the uncertainty of our times.

Barack Obama delivers his victory speech in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois, upon being elected President of the United States, November 4, 2008

Beginning his speech, he addressed the historic significance of his victory, stating, “If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer …

“It’s the answer that led those who had been told by so long, by so many, to be cynical and fearful and doubtful about what we could achieve, to put their hand on the arc of history and bend it for another day. At this defining moment, change has come to America.”

Barack Obama delivers his victory speech in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois, upon being elected President of the United States, November 4, 2008

African-Americans wept and danced in the streets on Tuesday night, declaring that a once-reluctant nation had finally lived up to its democratic promise. Strangers of all colors exulted in small towns and big cities. And white voters marveled at what they had wrought in turning a page on the country’s bitter racial history.

“It brought tears to my eyes to see the lines,” said Bob Haskins, a black maintenance worker at an Atlanta church, where scores of college students voted on Tuesday. “For these young folks, this is a calling. Everything that Martin Luther King talked about is coming true today.”

Barack Obama delivers his victory speech in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois, upon being elected President of the United States, November 4, 2008

Tobey Benas, a retired teacher who voted for Mr. Obama in Chicago, also savored the moment: “I can’t believe how far we’ve come,” said Ms. Benas, who is white. “This goes very deep for me.”

In a country long divided, Mr. Obama had a singular appeal: He is biracial and Ivy League educated; a stirring speaker who shoots hoops and quotes the theologian Reinhold Niebuhr; a politician who grooves to the rapper Jay-Z and loves the lyricism of the cellist Yo Yo Ma; a man of remarkable control and startling boldness.

Source: America Followed Obama Over the Racial Divide

Barack Obama and his daughter before he delivers his victory speech in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois, upon being elected President of the United States, November 4, 2008

Shortly before President-Elect Obama’s address, his Republican opponent, Senator John McCain delivered a gracious concession speech, acknowledging the historic significance of Obama’s victory.

“We have come to the end of a long journey,” Sen. John McCain, the Republican nominee for president, said tonight in Arizona after making a private telephone call to Obama to concede the election. “The American people have spoken, and they have spoken clearly.”

Barack Obama and Michelle Obama with their daughters, Sasha and Malia, after Barack Obama delivers his acceptance speech, November 4, 2008

McCain called on his supporters to rally behind Obama and reunite the warring political factions of a hard-fought and long-waged political campaign.

“It is natural tonight to feel some disappointment,” McCain said, “but tomorrow, we must… get our country moving forward again.” [...]

Obama has experienced one of the most stunning rises in modern American politics, first emerging on the national political scene only four years ago while a candidate for the U.S. Senate with a soaring call for national unity that he delivered at the 2004 Democratic National Convention.

Barack Obama with Michelle Obama and their daughters, Sasha and Malia, before he delivers his victory speech in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois, upon being elected President of the United States, November 4, 2008

He waged his groundbreaking campaign in transcendent terms, on themes of hope, change and common purpose, calling on the nation to rise above racial and partisan divisions. He styled his bid as a popular movement, tapping the power of the Internet to mobilize voters on an unprecedented scale and raise more money than any candidate in American history.

Source: Barack Obama, our next president

In a dramatic illustration of the historic significance of his election, Obama told the story of Ann Nixon Cooper who, at age 106 cast a vote for him. He said, “She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn’t vote for two reasons – because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

“And tonight, I think about all that she’s seen throughout her century in America – the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can’t, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

“At a time when women’s voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot.”

See also: Transcript – Full Text: Obama’s Victory Speech

Photo credit: Chicago Tribune, Getty Images North America, Reuters

Barack Obama and Joe Biden after he delivers his victory speech in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois, upon being elected President of the United States, November 4, 2008
Barack Obama and Joe Biden

Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Joe Biden and Jill Biden
Barack Obama with Michelle Obama before he delivers his victory speech in Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois, upon being elected President of the United States, November 4, 2008