Inauguration

On this page, you’ll find archived coverage and highlights from the January  2009 inauguration of America’s first black president brought to you by JJP’s bloggers and readers. Enjoy.

Highlights

Barackatunde’s Inauguration Recap Told Via Twitter, Flickr & Video

Cheryl Co-hosts BBC Worldwide’s popular radio program World Have Your Say, Mon Jan 19 (on National Mall)

That’s Brandon from Hip Hop Republicans on the far right, btw.

More of BBC’s WHYS Flickr photos with Cheryl

We Are One Concert Wrap Up (Cheryl)

This was overall AWESOME. Such incredible energy. The city is filled with positive vibes and people are bubbly & happy. This is despite the fact that for a former DC resident, the only parallel I have to this many people in the street at one time combined with humvees and tanks in the streets, a robust police/military presence, planes and copters in the air etc reminds me inevitably of the scene on 9/11. Then, however, people were rushing out of the city for their lives. More

Baratunde and Cheryl’s Commentary While Listening to Jamie Foxx in Media Section at We Are One Concert (Jan 18) – Over 58,000 views

Cheryl AKA Jill with Friends and Former DNC Chairman Gov. Howard Dean at Netroots Nation Ball

Baratunde On GRITtv With Kim Gandy, Davey D, Nicole Lee

In The Crowd for Obama’s Inauguration — Summary from Cheryl AKA Jill

Today I managed after walking for miles to find a spot on the National Mall among the sea of people watching the Inauguration. We all struggled to peer through all the heads to see a Jumbotron. The crowd was mostly friendly although tempers did flare several times at checkpoints and when standing. The crowds were thick and emotions were running high. It was sometimes difficult to move and there were times when I literally feared being trampled or simply crushed without the ability to breath.

Kids Inaugural with Michelle Coverage from Christian Progressive Liberal

I’d forgotten my Jackson Five days with 10, 000 screaming-at-high-only-dogs-can-hear pitch. Last night, I was fondly reminded of those days, while I saw Miley Cyrus sing her lil’ heart out, and Bow Wow draw screaming from the young ladies equal to the Jonas Brothers when they closed down Verizon Center. Shaq showed up via video (funny but kinda of chintzy, and then I remembered it IS hoop season), George Lopez rolled off a joke or two using the “Yes We Can” theme, and Jamie Foxx couldn’t be missed in those neon lime green kicks he was sporting. More

My Post-Inaugural Speech Op Ed In The UK Independent (Baratunde)

If America has been divided, by the economy, by religion, and by security, it has been even more profoundly estranged by race. And Obama deals with race in just the same way as it exists here – it may rarely be front and centre but it is always there. It is underlying essence of wealth disparities, of community relations, and now our President. The visual, on the steps of the Capitol built by slave labour, was obvious and he recognised his background in a very personal way. But what is different now is that those issues that once divided us are no longer on the outside, their advocates no-longer peering through the windows of those buildings of power. Obama is not agitating the White House, he is the White House. And everything he does will reflect on the black population outside. In many ways, although unifying, this further complicates America’s uneasy racial history. How he reacts when injustice strikes, in the form of police brutality, or through discrimination will be intriguing to watch. It will be no small test of President Obama and this welcome new politics. More

Inauguration Reports from JJP Posters (Rikyrah)

I asked folks to email me their accounts and/or pictures if they went to the Inauguration, because I love hearing on-the-ground reports from folks.
Well, here is our own Craig Hickman’s Washington Adventures:
Inauguration Eve
Inauguration Day
with writings and pictures.

What Went Wrong

SuperSpade: A Handicapped Inauguration

Excerpt: We got dropped off and went about a half block when we saw 2 younger people with Red Cross jackets. We asked them where we could get some medical attention. At this point, Ellen has taken off her coat and draped it on my legs in an attempt to warm them up. These Red Cross people, like every other person “there to help” were not helpful to us. I asked if we could get one of those golf carts we saw whizzing around, the ones that were supposed to be used for those with medical needs, were transporting able-bodied folks. The Police said they belonged to the Military. The Military said they belonged to the Police. The Red Cross people didn’t know anything. They directed us to a Police officer who had the unenviable task of calming the mob of Silver-ticketed Inauguration attendees that stood between us and the tunnel to the other side Union Station. More (Note from Jill: a compelling, must-read account. Whoever organized Inauguration Day on the Mall 2009 should be fired. And then slapped silly. Sunday’s events on the Mall, organized by the Obama team and with almost as many people in attendance, went smoothly — proving things could have been handled better. It’s a miracle and a testament to the spirit of the people in attendance that no one died on inauguration day 2009.)

Inaugural Missteps and Miscalculations (WaPo)

This much is clear: The Capitol Police and other officials underestimated the turnout among ticket holders. They turned down advance offers of help from volunteers and the National Guard, officials say. And police failed to respond adequately when trouble arose. More…

Inauguration Ticket Holder Meltdown

• Purple Ticket Holder Tunnel of Doom (Facebook)
• Purple, Silver, Blue Ticket Holders Turned Away (WaPo) Update: Many visitors today were turned away before the beginning of the Inaugural events. Even ticket holders had trouble getting into the ceremony. People with purple, silver and blue tickets in particular reported being shut out of their designated locations. Read first-hand accounts of the experience here.
• Inaugural Committee Apologizes for Ticket Fiasco (WaPo)
• Purple Ticket Turmoil Explained: What Happened On Inauguration Day HuffPo’s detailed analysis of the Inaugural Committee’s historic failures featuring maps

Left In The Cold: The 2009 Inaugural Youth Ball (a documentary by Baratunde)

(Note: Cheryl/Jill had a great time at the MTV Inaugural Youth Ball seeing Kanye West, Usher & other celebs. Flickr photos to come)

Someone Tell Samuel Jackson That Rosa Parks Wasn’t Just A Seamstress

As I recover from the extreme emotional, historic and meteorological conditions of Inauguration, I find myself reacting with a range of excitement, caution and concern at some of what went down. As my last post criticized the equation of Obama’s Inauguration with Civil Rights Movement victory based on the statements of celebrities and media personalities, this post will do something similar.

Inaugural Program for Youth Criticized (Washington Post)

A Vienna company that promised exclusive inauguration access to 15,000 youths is facing complaints from hundreds of angry parents that the program was a scam that left some students stuck on buses during Barack Obama’s swearing-in, unsupervised on the Mall or waiting for hours in hotels without participating at all. [...]The parents are demanding restitution and threatening a class-action lawsuit, and hundreds of college students, some from abroad, registered their outrage on Facebook. Members of Congress have also raised questions. More

Day by Day

Saturday

Saturday In DC For The Inauguration. Photos And Observations (Baratunde)

Hey team,

I’m here! This city is abuzz. Bus drivers are excited (and pissed about the added stress to there lives). Black folks are dressed in finery. The alcohol doth flow freely. It’s a magical time to be in Chocolate City, and I’ll do my best to share what I’m seeing with yall, wherever you are. More

Baratunde Gets JJP’s Media Credentials

Sunday

Sunday Inauguration Slideshow (Baratunde)

Monday (Martin Luther King’s Birthday)

Monday Inauguration Slideshow (Baratunde)

Martin Luther King: Meet Barack Obama (Cheryl)