Victory

November 4th, 2008.

Chicago: Grant Park.

Barack Obama chose to spend election night, the most important night of his life, right here in Chicago. He is in a field not even two blocks away, captivating us with his acceptance speech. The rest of the country and the entire world is watching us Chicagoans rejoice over our next president.

Hundreds of thousands of people flocked to Grant Park to be part of this historical night, but many more stayed home. The Chicago Police Department took extra precautions; they evacuated all of the surrounding buildings and put snipers up there. The people who were allowed into the VIP area had to go through metal detectors. At the gate, police officers went through everyone's backpacks, purses, and tote bags. Neighboring stores beefed up on security to prevent looting. Other stores closed early. Some people left town. The news anticipated that violence would break out. They said that the mob would overcome the armed forces and break windows, loot stores, fill up the hospitals with injured people, and even worse, the morgues with dead people.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Nothing. Never have I seen a kinder crowd. Everyone was full of smiles, happy tears, and laughter. People gave up their spots without second thought; total strangers hugged each other; and not one fight has broken out. We all rejoiced as one. We were all there for the same reason: to hope for a better destiny for our country.

To say that the experience was surreal would be an understatement. We, hundreds of thousands of people, were all on the same side. We shared victory; we shared happiness; and, most of all, we shared our love for a man who is set on making the world a better place.

When they announced that Obama had been elected, we all cheered wildly. When we saw Rev. Jesse Jackson with tears in his eyes, we all wanted to hug him. When McCain finished his powerful and riveting speech, we all clapped. When Obama came out on stage with his wife and children, we all screamed, cheered, hugged, and cried. When the rally ended, we all peacefully marched on the streets of Chicago. We held signs, we cheered, we smiled, we hugged, and we rejoiced. We were all together that night, as one people, and as one nation.

We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all of us defending the United States of America.
- Barack Hussein Obama