The thermometer showed minus 13 degrees C when I woke up at 6 a.m. The Inauguration itinerary had noted that they will close all security points at 9 a.m. So there was time.Really chithappa? my niece asked me as she turned the TV on to CNN. We better leave as soon as we can. Look at those crowds! She was the only other brave soul at my sister-in-law’s place (where I stayed the previous night) who volunteered to come with me.
Way back in 1963 on a warm balmy day in August, about a quarter of a million people heeded the call to March on Washington and proceeded to the gathering point in Washington D.C. by the towering spire of the Washington Monument. They then marched to the Lincoln Memorial a mile away, with their backs to Capitol Hill and listened in rapt attention to the speakers who gave voice to the anguish they had been living through. They would wait for John Lewis, Dr. King and others to speak. They would cheer whenever they heard strong and passionate words. They would hear the speakers utter words of importance that would have an effect on the Kennedy Administration. They would know that they were fighting for their civil rights. They would know that theirs was a nationwide struggle for Jobs and Freedom. They would express through their hearts and souls, with no guarantees that it would create any change.
They would not know at that time that millions of Americans, black and white would be watching the march and rally on TV. They did not know then that the dignity, strength, and character they exhibited would transform the country to enact the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act within the next two years. They did not know then that the hopeful looks on their faces would inspire Dr. King to step over his seven-minute limit of a prepared speech to verbalize on behalf of struggling souls of oppressed people everywhere. To deliver those immortal words “I have a dream” that would resonate through generations, across geography to all human beings across time. Soul-stirring words backed by the other leaders on the stage leading to a crescendo of affirmation — “Free at last”!
Forty five years later, we are now a nation of achievers. Dreams and aspirations have translated to policies and guarantees. We live in a vastly different world. An estimated 2 million of us are now going to brave the winter cold and be at the same spots where history had happened. I would not miss it for the world!
Toe and hand warmers in place, heavily booted, a few layers of clothes, a camera and a video cam strung over the neck, I was ready. Nivvi and I were dropped off at the Metro station at pretty much the same temperature we woke up to. It then took us about 40 minutes to be able to get through the turnstiles using the commemorative daily pass that my sister-in-law had so thoughtfully bought for us.
There were smiling faces all around, making way for more of those on the platform to come aboard. No need for Japan’s locomotive-style people-packing help. Pretty soon we realized how planning could be so different from what actually happens. At 8:40 a.m., we were still riding the Metro watching in dismay as the train rode past L’Enfant station without stopping. There went my plan to be strategically midway between the Monument and the Capitol!
Waterfront station was crowded when we got off. Walking towards the Mall, the crowd started getting thicker until finally on 14th street, one could only face west and attempt to move a foot at a time, towards what destination, no one knew. The smiles around us persisted and soon all we could see was the skies above us and government buildings floating by passively. It was fascinating to watch the lone city-jet high above us trying to make “O” with his smoke flume.
At about 10 a.m., we caught a glimpse of the Monument, but still did not have a clue as to what lay ahead. A few hundred yards later, a spectacular sight sprung into view as the crowd began to descend on a slope towards the obelisk, giving us a perfect view of where we could have been if we were here at 4 a.m.! Thousands of human beings in bright colors, all looking in one direction, Only this time, they were all looking towards the Capitol, where Dr. King’s dream of his children not being judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character, would come to pass at exactly noon.
We finally moved en masse towards one end of the slope facing the Monument from the East and what a treat it was to take pictures. One could not go wrong any which way you aimed your camera. The Jumbotron screen was so far away, but the video cam came in handy. All I had to do was lift it high above my head, zoom in, tilt the view finder screen and watch. Four others craned their necks to watch the events on this small screen. We were not alone with this bit of creativity. Kids were hoisted by their dads to afford them a glimpse. Teens took turns climbing on each others shoulders. Tears, smiles, pride, Obama caps, Obama buttons, twinkle in the eye — everyone was wearing one or more of these. People swapped tales of how they never thought that this would happen. Of how real this was. Happy people everywhere for whom all the world’s economic crisis meant nothing at this time. What mattered was that they were there.
Aretha Franklin’s rousing performance was lost to the enormous bow she wore. Pastor Rick Warren’s words were lost on the bowed heads of people who said their own thanks and prayers. Justice Roberts’ fumbling of the Presidential oath was lost to the charming smile of the new President we could see on the screen. The soft cold breeze at minus 8 degrees C was totally lost to all of us as we cheered in unison for Barack Hussein Obama while he accepted his responsibility to faithfully execute the office of President of the United States of America on this sunny day, January 20, 2009. What a country !
