Inauguration Day: A Matter of Consistency

I must admit, regardless of my fascination with the political process, I've never had much care for Inauguration Day itself. It's really just the ceremonial certain call for the year's election and the new administration's time to actually implement their seemingly endless policy adjustments. (Lord knows, every thing's going wrong by election season) Now I knew that this year's festivities would have a bit more clout, especially around college "campi," but an unexpected email caused me to stop and think through the onset of confusion. Needless to say, my resort was to humbly plead for a little consistency...

This Tuesday, the student body of Texas Lutheran University received the following message from the School President.

"Dear TLU Community,

On Tuesday, January 20, Barack Obama will be inaugurated as the 44th President of the United States. Always an historic event, this year's Inauguration will be even moreso, since Mr. Obama is the first African American in our 233-year history to be elected to our country's highest office. I invite the entire TLU community to gather together to observe the inauguration ceremony and inaugural speech"

To be perfectly honest, my first reaction to this announcement was to immediately question whether the same event would have occurred had Sen. John McCain been elected President? Now at this time I will have to reveal myself as a solid conservative and although McCain was certainly not my ideal candidate, being on the loosing side does cause me to quickly question the regularity of such a University sponsored event.

I have no quibble with celebrating the inauguration; we should always recognize and cherish a democratic electoral process which can be conducted regularly and without violent discontent after the results are in. Nor do I have a problem with celebrating the candidate himself. But for the sake of consistency, did the University hold a similar get together 8 years ago for the newly elected President Bush? If someone knows the answer to this, I'd love to know. I wouldn't be too surprised in either case as Bush was a local product and quite popular early in his first term. As for the function, I do wonder if we need any more Obama induced partying...



All joking aside, the "historical" nature of the present inauguration and new Presidency raises a deeper issue and yet another instance of what I observe to be inconsistency. The University President's email perhaps says it best, that the election of the first African American to the office of President makes this an extra special installment. That seems to be a common sentiment and it makes sense for a nation whose history has been tarnished with the enslavement of an entire race during it's first century to rejoice in the accomplishments of today. African American firsts are a media favorite and why not showcase examples of declining national discrimination; they're stories of our progression.

However, something doesn't add up and it happens to be a quandary I've had for some time now. After growing up observing the myriad of children's programing which advocated ending all discrimination in society and even a sense of unity that suggested complete insignificance of race, they've seemed to wear off on me. Despite the simplistic Utopian agenda of PBS, I want to pursue that "color blind" society. In no way do I seek a race-free future, but one where socioeconomic advancement is based solely on ability; Jefferson's meritocracy at work.

If I'm not mistaken, I'm not the only one who aspires to such a prospect. Was it not the goal of the many stages of the civil rights movement to overcome the socially and politically enforced barriers to equality? So in a fight for a world where race matters not, why must we stop and take notice for every racial first? Even more so, these two seemingly conflicting positions are put forth essentially by the same crowd and I have incredible difficulty understanding how we can be both color blind and racially attentive simultaneously.

Will this inauguration be a historic milestone? Yes, it probably will be, but I find it awkward to start writing history before it happens. Additionally, if this event is so special because of racial accomplishment, then answer me this: After Sen. Obama has been sworn in, can we now consider discrimination against African Americans to be dead because the highest office in the world has been "reached?" If yes, then we ought never hear about race again, correct? However, if you're informed enough to answer no, then you know that the battleground of discrimination is fought amongst everyday life and that highly publicized victories only do so much in the greater war.



I'm sure most see nothing wrong with the way the inauguration is being portrayed, but I do wonder how past civil rights warriors would view it? Would MLK rejoice in the fact that a black man was elected or that race did not matter? Unfortunately, I think this election has shown that race still does matter greatly on both sides and that is why I would rather not celebrate Barack Obama as an African American, but as the President, my President.

Is it too much to ask to see past the race of the man and instead focus on his personal accomplishment? I find it disrespectful to the Senator Obama when color seems to be the first and only story. Can't we move beyond this? Subsequently, when his right hand is raised and the Bible is sworn on, I'll say to our new President "Congratulations Barack on a successful campaign, I don't give a damn what color you are, and my prayers are with you and with our country." The choice is yours on how to respond to the ceremony, but I'd invite you to join me and perhaps strive for a little more consistency.

(Well this is the first post in months and I'm not making any promises, but here's hoping I can get around to this on a weekly basis. Let's just see how that works out shall we?)