On January 20, 2009, with the inauguration of America's 44th president, its first African-American president, America took a giant step toward reclaiming its light. This is the moment for Americans to be proud and an invitation for this country to truly be great again.
President Obama gave his inaugural address from the steps of a Capitol built in 1793 by slaves who were kept in pens just yards from where he stood. He and his family will live in a house constructed in 1792 by slaves who toiled in Virginia quarries to dig and transport the stones and lumber used to build the residence. The irony is mind boggling; 219 years later, an African-American is sworn into the highest office in the land. Finally, the two disparate narratives have merged, truly a moment for all Americans to be proud.
From this moment has come the opportunity to reclaim greatness. President Obama has called upon Americans to face the "gathering clouds and raging storms" by remaining "faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents." He has called for the American collective "to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics ... and to... choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness."
Continued...
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