Reflections on President-elect Obama

by Sue Rakoczy · November 6, 2008

On Wednesday, the day after the US elections, I was at a meeting at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. People congratulated me on the US election (I was born in the US, have lived in South Africa since 1989 and have permanent residence) and expressed their absolute delight at Obama’s room. They said, “It is a great day for the United States.” I said, “It is a great day for the world.”

I have felt relief that the Bush years are over at last, relief that McCain, who would have brought Sarah Palin in with him, did not win, and a sense of expectation for�the future.� Seeing and reading about people all over the world rejoicing in Obama’s victory is a startling experience. During these long, very long, Bush years some people have told me that “You started this war–I hate you–I hate Bush”, “Don’t you know that the whole world hates the US?”and other such comments. I was once even told to speak as infrequently as possible so that people did not hear my American accent and associate me with Bush.

Now things are wonderfully different. The “New York Times” called the election a “national catharsis”. I call it a “national exorcism” of the Bush years. People are comparing the outpouring of feeling to what we experienced here in 1994 with Nelson Mandela’s election.

And we can compare the two. Both men embody a hero archetype–they seem larger than life and people project their hopes and dreams on them. This is a very positive experience when it energises people to do what they can to make their dreams, embodied in the hero, come true. But inevitably the hero is revealed as a human being and some people become disillusioned at the fallibility of the hero. But we can all embody something of the hero’s/heroine’s energy and work to make our part of the world a better place for all.

Earlier this year I was teaching in Chicago, in the Hyde Park area where the Obamas have their home. One woman in my class took a�walk to find their house and saw that� Sasha, the younger Obama daughter, was standing on verandah.�Sasha said to the small crowd in front of their house, “Go away”. No chance of that now, Sasha. Enjoy your life in the White House!