"Welcome back, Ameria"

He cried as he watched Obama's victory speech in Grant Park. That's how much America has meant to him.

In an open letter to the people of America, Huzir Sulaiman paid a glowing tribute to her people:

When a lanky unknown named Barack Obama galvanised the 2004 Democratic National Convention with his keynote address, we listened closely to what he claimed to be the true genius of America, “an insistence on small miracles”:

• That we can tuck in our children at night and know that they are fed and clothed and safe from harm

• That we can say what we think, write what we think, without hearing a sudden knock on the door

• That we can have an idea and start our own business without paying a bribe

• That we can participate in the political process without fear of retribution, and that our votes will be counted, at least most of the time.

Once again, we are ready to say that we love you, America, for all that you have meant to us in the past, and for all that you can be to the world in the future.

Treat us with respect. Live up to your own ideals. Value the dignity of our lives as much as you value those of your own citizens. Walk tall, but let us walk with you.

Thank you for coming back, America. We’ve missed you.

Obama Mania

Pic from Washington Post

I still can't get over that tingling sensation that spread from my scalp to my finger-tips when it was announced that Obama had won. How could I, so far removed from the shores of America, be so affected ecstatically by this historic win? I am not alone; millions of people who have little or no connection with America were whooping with jubilation and joy. Never mind if American policy on various global issues doesn't change under him. Never mind if he continues to think of American interests first. The fact remains that the impossible has happened; that an African-American would dare dream the impossible dream; that anything is possible in the "land of milk and honey". Martin Luther King had dreamt of that a long time ago;

"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

What struck most of us is that the America that we have known for so long, the America that proclaims herself as being a multi-racial melting pot, but practices double-standards in her dealings with her minority people; the America where the blacks seem to excel only in sports and entertainment, and nothing else, has changed. It is an America that will become a beacon of hope to countries where minorities have been treated with contempt or as second class citizens. That is the message loud and clear that minorities around the world heard and rejoiced. Citizens of the world will point to November the fourth, 2008 as the day when the most powerful country in the world showed that "all men are created equal".

Obama’s first public words after winning the election on Nov 4, 2008:

“If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place
where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our
founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our
democracy, tonight is your answer.”

Read this in the New York Times

Obama Wins

A new era for the Americans, who have come of age. An inspiration to the rest of the world which have doubted America's democratic practice. The American Dream is alive and well for the black and coloured people. The implications of this historic win will wash beyond the shores of America. A Thai citizen ecstatically exclaimed, "What an inspiration. He is the first truly global US president the world has ever had." It would seem that Americans are able to put behind them centuries of racial discrimination. Well, what does this win mean for Malaysia?