Obama Does it - and so Can You!

Incredulous? Surprised? Elated? Whatever you are feeling at this moment, this is a defining point in history.

Barack Obama, the first African-American President of the United States.

‘I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.’ Dr Martin Luther King from his Rhetoric, I have a Dream

And in another great demonstration which represents a shift in dynamics within the spiritual realm which is working for the greater good. In the greater scheme of things, an indication of the sign of the times, this will certainly go down in History as being one if not the most life-changing and powerful statements to the world. In another act of defiance against the mindsets of those who said and believed it would never happen – WELL IT HAS, Barack Obama is the first African-American President of the United States of America. So where do you stand in the persistence and insistence of following your own dreams? Esther Austin

Barack Obama is now a man whose name can join the plethora of greats from the history books of time. Barack Obama now represents that iconic something which many feel is lacking within our community, A Black Role Model and how significant this event has been as this man stands upon such a platform. Can someone get greater than this, other than standing in the shoes of Almighty God?

"Someone was hurt before you; wronged before you; beaten before you; humiliated before you; raped before you; yet, someone SURVIVED." - Maya Angelou

Yet more importantly, apart from our own agenda, this man represents something symbolically profound. He has walked the talk and turned his dream and vision into reality by the conviction of his faith in believing he could make it to the mountaintop. This so called epic scenario is not about where he is now but the journey he has trod which hope, determination, tenacity, perseverance, courage, ambition and faith of character, which has placed him on the platform he now stands.

Certainly, Barack Obama is aware of the consequences that could rear their ugly heads to negatively feed off his success and thwart his future role as President. This man knows the huge responsibility he now carries upon his shoulders. Yet more poignantly he knows that he is about the American People, he is their voice of hope. His purpose is to define change and instigate transformation, to bring the new into existence and give hope to the people of America. He took the teachings of Dr Martin Luther King and turned his dream into reality, representing HOPE to the masses, and surely identifying with “A Change must Come.”

“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” Napleon Hill

The great Marcus Garvey once said ‘Up You Mighty Race, You Can Accomplish What You Will’ and this is something which each and every one of us should use as a mantra. This victory for Obama represents the dreams and visions of many, from as far back as the history books of time define the struggle for power and the right to stand where others have stood.

He stands on the shoulders of great men and women who have gone before, whose lives represented the fight for democracy and freedom, who chose to make a stand, even at the expense of loosing their lives. He stands on the great words of prolific leaders like Marcs Garvey, Malcolm X, Dr Martin Luther King and many more. Therefore, for many who are blinded by those opportunities which surround us every day, because of our own limitations and beliefs and by not having the courage to step outside of our own corridors of fear I encourage you with the words ‘At least try.’

"Don't wish it was easier; wish you were better. Don't wish for less problems; wish for more skills. Don't wish for less challenge; wish for more wisdom." - Jim Rohn

This lesson in its simplicity is – that you can achieve and be anything you want, you just have to find the power of conviction and belief in the message that is in your heart.

75% of people’s thoughts are negative, a well known fact. Conspiracy theories have been floating around the issues of his race, agenda, color etc. Yet for me quite simply this man looked past all this because ‘he had a dream.’ Regardless to what stood before him, he knew that with a strong team around him, a supportive framework, understanding the dynamics of what it truly means to make a sacrifice in order to gain, he now stands victorious in a place where no man of colour has stood before. I dare any of you, therefore, not to let the defeatist in you say ‘I can’t do it’ – and be inspired by the events of this week.

‘Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." Dr Martin Luther King