Inaugural Reaction, Part 3

Early this afternoon, a friend of mine sent an email to a racially diverse group of friends:

It looks like he made it in!

To which another friend replied:

I just got a text that someone saw a pig fly, hell froze over, and then they heard a big crash like glass was breaking. Glad to wake up today and see a 40 year-old dream come true.

I know that many white friends of mine seem to feel like we are already in a post-racial time. They don't see colored water fountains. They know that the law doesn't divide us into black and white. They have black friends. Heck, the smartest, most respected man they know is black ;).

Still, my non-white friends know this is an important moment. The racial environment we are in is more complex than it used to be. It's more like northern racism and less like southern fried racism. Every time a person of color (black, hispanic, asian, etc.) rises to a high position, we all feel like another glass ceiling has been broken, but there are many ceilings still to be broken. The highest profile barrier has been broken, but there are many more still in place.

Donklephant's First Thoughts on the Obama Presidency is a good read. It reminds me of The Onion's piece from election day: Black Man Given Nation's Worst Job.

Update: Mrs. Kid went downtown for the inauguration. Here is a shot she took of the crowd around her. Really a mass of American humanity.

From Inauguration2009