I watched the wonderful video on this page and just started bawling. This man Charles just lost his wife of 69 years right before he started volunteering for the Obama campaign, and he won a raffle to meet Obama in person. The video, it’s not very long, less than 3 minutes, is very moving.
I don’t dare watch it. I’ve cried at work enough my boss may start to think I’m a lunatic. (A friend lost her beloved dogs a week apart recently.) 
Aw, but it’s a heartwarming piece, very short. You’ll be smiling through your tears. And you may not cry, it’s just that I did because it’s a very emotional day.
Equipoise, Thanks for posting that. I’m so glad that Charles got to meet Obama. That video had me in tears, too.
Last week, I was surprised that, after early voting; good experience in a more Southern Repub county, I went back to my car and really cried. So odd and emotional, never before in my voting experience.
But, the reason why was my experience in 1990’s Missisisippi, very priviledged to hear so many elder African Americans tell their stories, in context of being blues musicians. Very strong people who weathered the storms of this country, prevailed, and gifted the world with their experience. To hear those stories was to be given a part of US history that doesn’t get told in the mainstream.
Hearing Charles: how great that he was so heartened, and got to meet Obama. I hope the world changes so much for the better in my lifetime, too.
I noticed three African American women with tear stained faces leaving the polls this morning. I think this has been a powerfully emotional experience for a lot of people.
I agree with the spirit of what you are saying, but isn’t that a very racial stereotype and assumption you are making?
What if I said that I saw three African American women crying and I said that it must be because their welfare payments got cut off.
Now, you could say I was being mean and you were being nice, but we would both have been making judgements based solely on race, no?
Thank you for the lovely post elelle! I voted early and I still had tears while in the ballot box and walking out of the polling place, and I’m a white girl from Kansas. Just to be part of history, wow. Dangerosa, you’re so right. As I said in another post, it’s a powerful feeling.
I’d bet that when Charles first started choking up, he was thinking about his wife not being there by his side.
jtgain, please. Don’t threadshit in my thread.
Except that one of these judgements is justified (black voters are overwhelmingly Democratic, and it’s not surprising that being able to vote for a black man to be President would make people emotional, especially people who weren’t allowed to vote 40 years ago), and one of them is not (white people are the plurality of welfare recipients).
jtgain: I don’t really understand what you are trying to say, in light of welfare payments. Whuh?
This election is very emotional because it’s the first time someone who’s not a pure white guy has got to this point. The reason people are having very heartfelt emotions welling up is because there has been some hard oppression in our country; people have suffered under that, and now, there is some some promise of breaking out of the status quo with Obama. People are emotional because this is the first time we break out of white male only. A tremendous step, really.
I’ll respect the OP and back out of this thread…
No.
The women were leaving the polling place; there is context to believe the tears had to do with the election.
Your statement is just racist, as there is no context to believe their tears had anything to do with welfare checks.
How right you are. I’ve always assumed when I see a Black person crying a a funeral, it is from their loss. How racist of me. Or when I see a woman laughing with her friends, it is because she is enjoying their company, how very sexist.
I would now like to apologize for being racist and sexist. In the future, I will only attribute emotions of white men within context.
No decency, even today? :rolleyes:
I’ve seen that video, and sent it to many friends. It made me tear up too–just at the part where Charles mentions his wife. It is that kind of community that makes me proud to be American.
I took care of 3 African American female patients today–all over 70. They were quite emotional (jubilant) about their votes today, as was I–white as Casper the ghost.
What I sense today in my comings and goings is hope in the air–hope and excitement and a readiness to work. Long may it linger–despite claims of “racism”(wth?) or whathaveyou. That video reflects that anticipation and hope.