Here we are. November 4, 2008.
A day of unprecedented history and the mark where America begins its course of recovery to heal from generations of wounds, scars and blemishes which have bruised our beliefs and faith in not only local, state and national governments but in each other.
Yesterday had to happen to bring us here but we shouldn’t rely on history to preside over our future.
Voting a man of true African-American descent into the highest executive position in the country is step one in our monumental challenge.
Each of us involved in the process being politically, artistically, and socially active beyond voting today is the next step.
President-elect Obama made campaigning look “dope”. As you listened to the unmatched eloquence in each speech and noticed how he doesn’t compromise his demeanor or mannerisms that genuinely define his character and personality (“the pound” he gave his wife, the brushing off the shoulders, his walk, the tone of his voice, etc.), it transformed into a reality from an improbability and charged our confidence in the audacity of hope and the prosperity of potential.
As meaningless as his declaration to Bryant Gumbel about building a basketball hoop at The White House may be against his ability to carry out policies and proposals while in office, Obama’s personality and image carries a deep relativity that I haven’t seen since
forever in my lifetime. Because I never saw or heard "
me" in Washington, that was my answer to why I didn't trust in a system that was not even loosely connected to who I am.
However, I along with the majority of us could not allow any detraction or excuse to prevent us from making a move to alter how government is run and to be an activist in executing the change.
It feels like to so many of us from all ethnicities after engaging this former Senator from Illinois “yeah, my uncle’s President”.
The social networking strategy and polycultural reach the textbook "ObaMachine" (courtesy of thousands of volunteers and two namesake P.R. "beasts" David Plouffe and David Axelrod) managed to accomplish was a prototypical template of what can and will be done in future elections local to national aimed at targeting the human spirit and will of "Wemotion".
Someone sent me an e-mail a few days ago which was simple but truly profound, it read: “Crispus Attucks fell so Rosa Parks could sit, Rosa sat so Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. could march, Dr. King marched so that Barack Obama could run, Obama ran so that our children and grandchildren can fly.”
Barack Obama is the result from a revolution of movements culminated by all civil rights pushes, marches, insurrections and Supreme Court decisions we have borne witness to and our ancestors have endured for decades.
I am positive that as a
united state of hope we will continue the campaign for change not just by placing a body in office, but by making official use of our bodies to be active in the pursuit of improving our local governments and keeping a watchful eye on our neighborhoods, create new systems and workforces to increase our competitive standing globally, becoming more involved as parents in school districts to closely monitor how and what our children are being taught, told and fed, not turning away but turning toward our families and realizing they are a reflection of how we view the world and work feverishly to assist those who need counsel on balancing their budget, consolidating or clearing debts, keeping clean driving records, regularly getting “check-ups” in whatever it may be for men, women and children, keeping relationships respectfully open (with boundaries) between child and parent and the list continues.
November 4th brings us to task with our daily psychological assignment to achieve personal peace as much as this day defines American history in politics, civil rights, and world history in general.
The brotha’s going to have a tough time while this U.S. dollar value weakens from all the backdebt, market flux, most definitely companies will suffer record losses this quarter as consumer spending freezes this holiday season, this will trigger more borrowing from The Fed further increasing a sinkhole deficit which may take three Presidential terms to balance, there are two unfinished wars to end as safely and reasonably as possible.
At the same time, he must make sound decisions regarding foreign policy, energy alternatives, keeping up with the exorbitant budget for replenishing the military and defense not to mention ongoing NASA and infrastructure projects, doing something feasible in reforming healthcare, diplomatically easing tensions in North Korea, Russia, Iran, and he will most certainly be tapped to address Africa’s ails as no American President has ever done before.
Work is cut out but we must be the “world” in the
change we want to see (to reverse Mahatma Gandhi’s quote) meaning total immersion and involvement in the magic of unifying our goals and assessing our priorities is the only way to become what we seek.
I voted, you voted, we brought family and friends to the booths, took pictures, marked that date down in our histories as being the first time for many of us and the first time we may believe “we might have somethin’ to do with this one here”.
I applaud everyone who participated in the process with numbers tallied today which hopefully will be broken four years from now and we shall surge forth to see history makers in each local government representative of all nations, backgrounds, cultures and colors who also believe in themselves as being an addition to “The Change We Need”.
Special moments call for a special segment here at Audible Chocolate and this is a sampler mix of cuts I put together just for today.
This is the first mix here at Audible Chocolate in fact...................
A playlist called
“Audible Chocolate: The Obama Box”Here at AC, we created a special selection of 24 soulful themes from this genre we can listen to that best exemplify the emotion and spirit of what we shared today. Consider this the most influential confection we can place in a box for our new President-elect Barack Obama.
Enjoy!
- A Toast To The People- Gil Scott Heron with Brian Jackson
- Are You Ready- Sly & The Family Stone
- Black Man- Stevie Wonder
- Chocolate City-Parliament Funkadelic
- Come On Feet- Melvin Van Peebles
- Curtis Mayfield - Beautiful Brother of Mine
- Dream Journey- Bob James
- Dream On- Barry White
- Everything Must Change- Nina Simone
- Fighting For Life- Stefano Torossi
- Get Into Something- The Isley Brothers
- Holiday- Roy Ayers Ubiquity
- Keep Your Head To The Sky- E,W & F
- McFadden & Whitehead - Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now
- Peace and Love Movement_ii-(Now)- Mandrill
- People Get Ready- Vanilla Fudge
- Power To The People- Joe Henderson
- Right On (live)- Marvin Gaye
- Stepping Into Tomorrow- Donald Byrd
- The Long And Winding Road- Aretha Franklin
- Visions (live)- Stevie Wonder
- Voices Inside (Everything Is Everything)- Donny Hathaway
- We The People- The Soul Searchers
- We've Only Just Begun (live)- Curtis Mayfield
http://rapidshare.com/files/160794135/Audible_Chocolate-_The_Obama_Box.part1.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/160808666/Audible_Chocolate-_The_Obama_Box.part2.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/160880739/Audible_Chocolate-_The_Obama_Box.part3.rar
Included below is a poem I wrote entitled “Barack The Hope”.
Boomp3.comthe story they told us was.......
In a small pocket of Kenya
was a large mass of water
the Sukuma tribe
named Nyanza via Lake Victoria in Kisumu
Nyangoma-Kogelo
Mama Akuma
bore a native Sun
who shone earthbound tones
of browns and yellows
the Luo people migrated from Sudan
and presently divided into 12 tribal clans
survival sustained America received a young man
Hussein Onyango Obama
the father of the (future) President's Baba
President Of The United States Of America
not Kenya like Jomo Kenyatta
72 years ago will mark the inauguration anew
reverse the 72 and in the 11th month of 1942
Shirley Ann Dunham as the Wizard of Wichita she came
18 years later in Manoa
Kansas & Kenya
East met West at destiny’s behest
introducing her to Barack Hussein
translated they incarnated "a beautiful blessing"
so nice he offsprung the name
48 years back on the second of February
crowning cultures marry
the fire to the flame
185 days later on the 4th of August
a strong wind reigned supreme
8-4-1961 and 2008 both equalling 1
for the campaign
for the world
for the love
for the dream
B.A. from Columbia U. in ’83
magna cum laude from Harvard with a J.D.
back to Chicago to discover
an astronomical occurrence
rarely witnessed often
1989 the summer eclipsed
by a moon named Michelle Robinson
glowing at Sidley Austin
matrimony avowed
a journey profound
a love bound by bravery and beauty
to the end
two fighters decided to take it
joined by Malia and Sasha
delivered to make
the dreams from their father sacred
history establishes
as each second vanishes and
in entirety so much have we seen
opinions are opined as
constant judgment has maligned
the truth of our humanity
ego has dominated debates
emotion is the specific ocean
that’s drowning our faith
fresh is the face
with candor and fervor
thrown in the race
as the American life preserver
we believe and appreciate
the will in lifting up
sleeves to elbow
the work is wrenching to the gut
tooth to nail and
bolt to nut
the time is now to seize and
exert the strength of our national team
as the struggle continues
the result must shine in the gleam
we're audacious enough to hope and
revive it alive
we can define our vote and
council communities to strive
Washington cannot be apart
from the whole
the corn fields project blocks
trailer parks and cosmic slops
don’t shadow our souls
outlooks are looked off as
rich crooks off the books are shook off
the corrupted dust that’s suffocated us
by January soon will be brushed off
the change we sought to make
has now been touched off
with record breaking voter turnout
previously burned out by
non-relative candidates to claim
such as the restless weary
on the wane for
partisan division and political gain
did we mention our chief commander
has a wicked left-handed hoop game
yet and still how we aimlessly spite peace
continually ceasing to refrain
from basing a choice or
ignoring the voice
because of its name or
attack a painting from an artist
due to its color and message
abound in its frame
this will forever be
one of humanity’s calamities in shame
all three eyes
as should the three worlds
unify as one to remain
It is possible, isn’t it?
It is most certainly possible……
I suggest you access
Blaxploitation Pride today as
Eyes On The Prize, the most comprehensive documentary on the civil rights movement, is highlighted there which is integral for such an incredible celebration we experienced and were a part of.
Yes we did. Now, let’s DO more.
Love 4 Life,
Mr. Wone
