The OBAMA Effect
This week has been full of anxiety for me. Anxiety caused by witnessing
several water shed moments.
It Started off with Jo Wilfried Tsonga (Winning
the Paris Tennis Masters Tournament), then Lewis Hamilton (Wining the formula
One Title) and now Barack Obama. 3 black people adding three more chapters
to black history.
A cameroonian friend asked what effect this will have on black folks all
over the world.
- Being BLACK is no longer an excuse to underachieve.
- Being AFRICAN is no longer an excuse to underachieve
- People of different races can trust each other...at least in America
- My last reason is this (and it's very important so read on)... If your life is tainted with a history of
suppression, mistrust and segregation... your ability to be your best is
severely restricted. Many people don't know this, but alot of what we are is a
function of what we see around us. The things we see motivate us. Obama's
victory has taken another huge chunk out of the wall that separates people of
brown,black skin and being their best. He's followed in the footsteps of
thousands before him. He's standing on the shoulder of Giants like Colin Powell,
Condoleeza Rice, MLK, Michael Jordan, Oprah, Spike Lee, Duke Ellington, Louis
Armstrong and Muhammed Ali. These people make you believe YES, YOU
CAN.
Finally, as Cameroonians, we have to remember that such walls have
never really existed. We do have the perverted walls of tribalism,
egoism, nepotism and corruption in our system that compete with those faced by
African Americans. I never thought I'd be president of Cameroon one day,
HOWEVER, I never thought it was IMPOSSIBLE. Until Today, African-Americans had
the lingering thought that IT IS IMPOSSIBLE for them to aspire let alone get
there. That was the difference between us (Cameroonians) and them.
I
know I've gone on and on and on.. but u get the point.
PS: Did anyone of
you shed a tear like I did. I don't know why but I could not resist the power of
that moment.