Jack & Jill Politics

No matter what happens today…whether Barack Obama wins or loses, America will never be the same. No matter what happens today, here are a few things I think will emerge as truths.

• This is not the first time Barack Obama will run for president. If he wins, we can look forward to another run working together to re-elect him in 2012. If he loses, I don’t see him bowing out like Al Gore. I’d predict that a loss to McCain would only put a bigger fire under Obama and he’d be likely enough to run again as an avenger of justice denied.
• The American people will never see African-Americans the same way again. As the nation has watched the Obama family in action, blacks in America been normalized and humanized. Moreover, now everyone can see our power – the power of the black vote. There was a reason it was illegal to teach slaves to read. There was a reason certain forces used terror and lynching and unjust laws to hold us back from voting. There’s a reason even now that it is always African-American communities that have been specially targeted in 2000, 2004 and 2008 for voter suppression. It’s because we know from experience that elected leadership in this country has the power to benefit or oppress us. We understand the stakes involved firsthand mean our ability to thrive or die. It’s because we are that powerful in our sincere belief in democracy and in our effective use – when able – of the right to vote.
• Desegregation and affirmative action worked. When you break down artificial barriers among people and open doors for talented, qualified people who wouldn’t have gotten a chance due to prejudice and oppression, you create an America where it truly is the content of your character and not the color of your skin that matters. We are closer now than ever to one America for all.
• This is only the beginning. If Obama wins, it will be the climax of hundreds of years of struggle for equality in America. If we lose today — well, if there’s one thing black folk know how to do, it is to keep coming until justice is done. And we will keep coming. And keep coming and keep on a-comin’. There is no stopping us. There never was. We are that persistent and that patient. That’s why that song “We Shall Overcome” sent shivers down the spines of people who heard it back in the day. Think of how far we have come only a few generations out of slavery and only one generation removed from Jim Crow. Think of where we will be one generation from now.
• U.S. politics and participation will never be the same. More African-Americans will step forward to represent their communities, no matter their ethnic composition. Obama’s innovative campaign has flipped the script on how you reach and persuade people. I’ll quote Adam Nagourney’s article in the New York Times today.
  • “It has rewritten the rules on how to reach voters, raise money, organize supporters, manage the news media, track and mold public opinion, and wage — and withstand — political attacks, including many carried by blogs that did not exist four years ago.”

This blog here at Jack and Jill Politics, this community right here didn’t exist 4 years ago. We’re now at the top of the heap of black political blogs, thanks to you. Our traffic has tripled in just the last couple of months. We have worked tirelessly since 2006 and you know what, no matter what happens today, we’ll be here tomorrow — fighting with you for a better, stronger, fairer America for all — and better believe we’ll be here the day after that, too.