Whether or not people are for or against our new president, Barack Obama is irrelevant. The fact that he won is what is relevant. Up until November 4th, everywhere we went we saw posters and signs and people with pins for the candidate they were supporting. People were arguing and debating and class time was taken up to talk about the election.
But, that is over now. It is time to move on. Democrat or Republican, we can all agree that this country needs change. Over the past eight years with Bush in office we have become an unstable nation economically, politically, and overseas.
Obama now has the chance to change this. No, I am not na’ve enough to think we are coming right out of the war, we are not. I’m also not na’ve enough to think all economic problems will be solved. There will always be people in poverty and there will always be people with money. Let us hope that those that were hostile about the outcome can now put that aside. Let us hope that we can move on and allow President Elect Obama to do what he has set out to do.
Personally, I do fear what may happen in the future because there are still many people that are racist and prejudice. These are the same people that have been participants in the many online blogs threatening to assassinate Barack Obama. However, we should take note that there are clearly many more that are pleased with the outcome than not. Obama received more popular votes in this election than any other presidential candidate in United States history. This is not just a coincidence. People want him in office. They are eager to see what he can do and to see what changes can be made. The media seems to be portraying the immense number of African Americans that participated in the election and voted for Obama. However, only about 12 percent of the population is African American. Additionally, many African Americans still did not participate in the election. This means that it was the majority group that came out and voted. It was the white population, along with other minority groups, that fought to put Barack Obama in office and to be our 44th president, not the 1st African American president. Obama especially attracted the attention of young voters, ages 18-29. 60 percent of young voters voted for Obama. Furthermore, the majority of all age groups and both males and females voted for him. Among females 56 percent voted in favor of Obama and among males there was a tie of 49 percent. Among those ages 30-44, 52 percent voted in favor of Obama, while only 46 percent voted in favor of McCain. There was once again a tie between those ages 45-64. Still, those over 65 voted only 45 percent for Obama and 53 percent for McCain. However, those over 65, only counted for 16 percent of the total votes. This statistics are far higher than those of past elections. It is obvious that Obama earned his position in office and that many people are pleased with the outcome. If we can all manage to put some of these social constraints and stubborn personalities aside and come together as one nation, there is sure to be change. We should all stand together and fight for the same cause-America.
Jillian Barton is a first-year student. She can be reached at JB669457@wcupa.edu.