Inauguration

I went to Washington DC to see the Inauguration of the 44th President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama.

Before I begin this I would like to say that this is not about politics, this is about a turning point in America’s history.  We talk about inclusion, being fair,  and how we don’t let the color of someones skin determine how far they can go in life. We talk about equality, democracy, human rights, and how everyone, no matter who they are, has rights. This is the point where the image and values that America tries to portray to the world are actually reflected in our actions. We elected someone who is not white, and has the middle name Hussein.

A couple weeks ago a friend of mine found out about a bus trip from Grand Rapids to Washington DC. It was only $100 and left Monday at 4pm and returned Wednesday at 8am. We knew the ride wouldn’t be fun, but it would be worth it.  So we went to DC.

We got on the bus and so did a news crew. I was interviewed.

WATCH IT HERE!

The bus ride was not that much fun and I barely slept.

When we got to DC the streets appeared to not be that crowded. We went to get a coffee and looked around at the street vendors.

My Friend bought the shirt I wanted. They didnt have my size.

We felt pretty confident about getting a spot in the national mall. After all, the streets were fairly empty and it was 8 am. So we set out to get our spot on the National Mall for the the Inauguration.

We quickly realized that it was going to be a lot of work.

A couple of blocks away the street began to fill up.

Then things came to a standstill. It was 9am.

An older lady passed out and hit her head on the sidewalk. Right next to my foot. We helped her up and got medical assitance. She was an older black lady that came out BY HERSELF. She waited so long for a moment like this, and she probably ended up seeing it in a hospital room. That is really too bad.

We pressed on to get into the National Mall. We were going to have to find a way around the crowd.

This way didn’t look too promising.

Yes, that is a tunnel for a highway. They go under the city in DC. And they were crammed shoulder to shoulder. It was like something out of a disaster/post-apocalyptic movie. It was scary.

We went into 3 tunnels and back out of 3 tunnels. Some of them as wide as 4 lanes. They were all filled.

We finally stumbled upon a way to the National Mall. We were really far away though. Miles away. So we “mall walked” to get there (I know, I know – bad pun)

we kept walking

Along the way I got to take in some sights. But I just couldn’t take the pictures I wanted to. We were moving at a very fast pace, lots of people, and my hands were very cold.

This was a site for sore eyes —- and feet

We knew this was the closest we were going to get to the festivities.

And I was happy.

The area around the Washington monument began to fill up.

Just how close, or far, from the actual Inauguration was I?

Well, this is how far I was from the LAST jumbotron.

And Look for the red dot on the map here. That is about where I was. Remember, the Capitol is at the very bottom of the picture.

See it full size here!

It was very cold out there. The wind was pretty terrible. But I was warm

Then Obama Came on.

I don’t need to describe what happened next, just watch the video. Sorry for the bad camera work. That is what happens with thousands of people and bitter cold winds. (there is also a little bit our our journey at the beginning as well).

During the Inauguration I had chills, not just because I was cold. Real chills. I knew this was history right before my eyes. I thought of all the other Inaugurations of great people (and others much less than great), and knew that this one was just as historic as the first. It was also incredible to be in the presence of so many people who were so happy about the same thing. I started to look around and really take stock of what was happening, and here are some simple observations.

1: There were no protestors. At all. Is that a good thing? This country was founded on dissent. Too many people in lockstep is never a good thing, no matter what.

2: There were no homeless in DC. There were some chalk writings on the sidewalks that said “Obama, why have all the homeless been rounded up and arrested right before your inauguration?” And I saw no homeless. Well, I lie, I saw one in front of a church. He looked like he was hiding.

3: White people were awfully eager to help black people out. “He dropped his glove, I am going to run 2 blocks to return it to him!”, “No, please, go ahead of me”, etc… Shoot, even I helped out a black person when she fainted. (I would have anyway though). My point is, I never saw white people SOOO EAGER to help out and be friends with black people.

4: Everyone was happy. With that many people in one spot, getting tired, cold, and sometimes frustrated because they can’t ge the spot they want, I never saw a fight, or an angry person.

Me and my friend Matt recorded an “audio journal” of sorts during our trip. Its not very good, and we forgot to record during some times. Its in mp3 form so you can right click and download it.

LISTEN/DOWNLOAD HERE!

Final Thoughts about the Election/Inauguration.

This election has been a bit of an anomoly. And for everyone that hates George W. Bush, you need to thank him for screwing up so bad that America has started to wake up, get involved and actually make some sort of CHANGE. People young and old are energized about politics. I saw young black men wearing hoodies with the Presidential Seal on them. Did you ever think you would see that? I didn’t. I never thought I would actually be proud to vote for a president. I never thought I would say I am currently proud of my country. (reminder: liking the country you live in and being proud of its actions are not mutually exclusive. Thanks kevin!). I am proud. I am proud that America was able to come together to do this. I am proud that millions of people came together from across the country to celebrate this, and it happened with no problems. I am proud that my son, Thaden, was sad because he didn’t get to go see Obama. I am happy that the first President my son will be aware of is not 100% white. Imagine what that means for future generations.

I am proud to say I voted for Barack Obama. And I am very proud and excited that I got to be there.

Please do not take any of this as blind acceptance of President Obama’s policies and decisions. He is to be held to the same standards and scrutiny as anyone else is.

Kent County Democratic Party

I guess this is the part where I pat myself on the back.

Back in December The Kent County Democratic Party asked me to design some posters for their Inaugural Celebration. I did two; one for promoting it and one commemoration poster that was sold and displayed at the event.

1: Promotion Poster

This poster played on some of the imagery used during the campaign. It mimics the style of typography that was present in the “Change We Can Believe In” and the “Yes We Can” posters.

2: The Commemorative Poster

I used the image of Alexander Calder’s La Grande Vitesse sculpture that is in downtown Grand Rapids. This sculpture is a point of pride for the people of Grand Rapids, and by putting it on a background of blue it represents the city of Grand Rapids voting blue, rather than their usual red.

The Arts

Barack Obama insprired artists and musicians to produce works that supported him. One of my favorite street artists, Shepard Fairey created the Iconic Hope Poster. The original is now in the Smithsonian (Read some more about it here). He also held an art exhibit during the Inauguration weekend.

DJ Z-Trip went on tour registering people to vote and supporting Obama. He released a mix during the campaign. After everything was all said and done he released a Victory mix, which I highly reccomend downloading and listening to.

DJ Z-TRIP -  Obama Mix 2008

-  Obama Victory Lap

-Thanks for reading all the way to the end. I know I went on a little long. If you have anything to say shoot me an email at jsweeks@gmail.com

SEE YA!

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