Vivian looks angelic herself as she adores "the speech"

August 28, 2008

It’s over! What a speech! What a moment! I have been in tears for the past 30 minutes and trying to collect myself. Why am I so emotional? Yes, I am honored to represent the heritage of the Owens family – Black and “mixed” – at this convention; it is hard to grasp the enormity of this moment for my Dad and for so many others who came before me.

Yes, I am thrilled by the potential of a different future for my two young sons. Obama’s candidacy – win or lose – will provide new options for each of them in their lives.

What is hard for me to articulate here, however, is the most selfish aspect of this victory. I am Obama. He is a mixed-race guy only two years younger than me whose mother could have been my mother. I went to Harvard; he went to the Law School. We both married strong, well-educated and beautiful partners. We share the burning desire to lead or at least participate in politics. We both lost our first efforts to go to Congress and it rocked our worlds. We both are liberals at heart who are unafraid to question orthodoxy and attempt to find some middle ground in order to ensure that problems are addressed. We both are concerned with the State of Black America, but act upon our concerns through a simple mantra: “What is good for Black Americans, is good for all Americans!”

But, bigger than this, is the fact that Obama’s success validates an entire cohort of the Black population – those who have become part of the Black middle class (and higher). Regardless of our individual politics, we struggle daily to be accepted by our white counterparts and acquaintances as full equals in every way. All too often, we navigate the private and public sectors – even the non-profit sector – as exceptions to the stereotypes. Well, Obama may also be the exception to the rule in many, many ways, but his ascendance provides an entirely new context for all of our relationships. This is very hard to explain, but it’s real. You’ll have to trust me.

And then there is the simpler sense of validation: we lonely few in New York who supported Obama over our home state Senator for 18 long months have emerged with a victory. The inevitable did not happen. Change happened. “Yes, we DID!”