Megan Boyle’s Blog

Long before there was a Barack Obama or even a Martin Luther King, the Constitution mandated that the President take the oath of office on January 20th.  So it is somewhat coincidental that the Inauguration of our first African American President and the holiday honoring the civil rights leader who gave his life for this cause, coincide.  The connection is sweet and bitter and it is that sense of injustice righted that inspired me to make the trek to Washington this weekend.

I know it is a holiday weekend at Chicago’s O’Hare airport. The glitches have begun. My first flight to DC delayed and canceled. The. cautious pilot, unwilling to risk another “Miracle on the Hudson” in subzero temperatures, decided we needed auxiliary power to get there.  Thank you, United!

Glitch-free never described the path to equality in America, either. It was one ugly trip, a fact lost on some of our children.  I do not fear this path is destined to repeat itself, though, by their lack of knowledge.  I am hoping (there’s that word again) that they are liberated by an America that has an image of equality at the helm. Educational equality, health care equality, employment equality still elude us and wound us.  But I am thrilled, literally thrilled by the world that looks at the White House and sees a brown face. A worthy, hard working, family loving man of color is about to take the wheel in stormy seas and give this nation a turn. I hope he has a “Miracle on the Potomac” – not expecting one, but it sure would help.

It might still be worthwhile to look back in time with your family this weekend.  When I was my children’s ages, the only family of color on TV was Julia’s.  Julia, played by actress Diane Carroll was a nurse, a single Mom, raising her son alone.  We were watching this show one spring day when newscasters interrupted the broadcast to tell us that Martin Luther King had been slain.  I remember not knowing who he was and asking his story.  So I’d say that if you are appalled by your children’s lack of knowledge or emotion at this historic time, I would suggest you withhold judgment. Today’s youth live in a world full of information and they take it all in.  They may not relate as well to the sacrifices and suffering of those who brought us here, but they are the beneficiaries of this new world. That was what we wanted for them. And they will not let these unalienable rights disappear, but will take their lessons to build a better world with the better model they have inherited.

I have new plane now, a new flight. Time to take wing.

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 17th, 2009 at 2:57 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.