the eyes on the prize edition

I've been meaning to send out a bunch of links for more than a week, since Palin began really hitting out at Obama, and the rallies started to turn ugly...the fact that people were yelling things like "traitor" and worse was making me fearful and angry, and I started realizing just how hard an Obama presidency is going to be for some people. I guess I knew it at one level before, but I started to get a better emotional understanding of how much an Obama presidency was going to upend some people's worlds, and how scared they are of having an African-American in the White House.

And I realized that, although times have changed so much, that this election is partly a continuation of the civil rights battles of the 50s and 60s...that the ugly racism and violent rhetoric about anti-Americanness is a reaction that is threaded through to those struggles, those birthing pains, that deep conflict. I realized that someone might get hurt, someone could even die. And I had a glimpse of how brave those civil rights activists were, and how brave the Obamas are today.

So I've been singing in my head, off and on for the last week or so, that civil rights era song:

Ain't gonna let nobody, Lordy, turn me round,
Turn me round, turn me round,
Ain't gonna let nobody, Lordy, turn me round,
I'm gonna keep on a-walkin', Lord, keep on a-talkin', Lord,
Marching up to freedom land.

I had started collecting stories and links of all the violence and threats, but then switched to collecting links to those stories that showed how many people are ready. I've decided not to focus on the fear and the hatred. It's a good thing, because yesterday brought the news that a plot to kill African-American high schoolers and to assassinate Obama was thwarted. I think Obama's response, yesterday, says it all:

"I think what has been striking in this campaign is the the degree to which these kind of hate groups have been marginalized. That's not who America is. That's not who our future is. What I've found is people here [in w. Pennsylvania] don't care what color you are. What they're trying to figure out is who can deliver. It's just like the Pttisburgh Steelers: they don't care what color you are, they just want to figure out, can you make the plays?"

Obama's right, and this year, I think we've got a good portion of the American people who are willing to stand with him and not be deterred: Responding to Palin's meanness, he said: "We're not going to be distracted. We're not going to be diverted. Not this time. Not this year. Our challenges are too great for a politics that's so small."

Check out this link for inspiring pictures of what this campaign is really about, and a video interview with a 105 year old woman, who's waiting for Obama to be elected...

That's what America looks like. People are coming out and doing the right thing. Just look:

We've got people walking off the job, refusing to participate in McCain's nastiness. Yesterday, around 40 people in Indiana walked off the job--when they were assigned to call people for the McCain campaign, and leave nasty messages. Indiana forbids robocalling with pre-recorded messages, so such messages have to be delivered by people individually.

We've got ex-Dept of Justice officials who are speaking out about the still-existing partisanship within the DOJ

We've got the two Senators from Maine speaking out against McCain's robocalls, asking for them to cease

We've got a GOP official from Wisconsin endorsing Obama, denouncing the robocalls

We've got 5000 lawyers committed to monitor the polls on election day--we still need more!

We've got McCain supporters confronting the ugliness at McCain rallies--challing the anti-Muslim rhetoric

We've got the fact that Obama has historical, record-high favorability ratings for a Presidential candidate. Those who would spew ugliness are the minority.

We've got the fact that at least 26 newspapers that backed Bush have now endorsed Obama--including the Hartford Courant, which has only backed one other democrat in 244 years.

And we've got the fact that 100,000 people turned out in Denver a few days ago, when only 4,000 turned out for McCain; last week, 100,000 in St Louis, and 75000 in Kansas City. The majority enthusiastically supports Obama... now we just have to get everyone to get out there and vote!

The bat signal is on, even in North Carolina.

The people are ready, even the schoolchildren in Nebraska.

Burly NASCAR men in Ohio are being inspired by little old Jewish ladies while waiting in line to vote, and changing their minds to support Obama, because they too want to be part of history.

All we've got to do is keep working and keep our eyes on the prize...

Volunteer. There's seven days left. Help make this historic election happen. If we all stand up, together, we will not be moved...