Witnesses to History

On November 4, 2008, Barack Hussein Obama II made it to the history books as the first African-American man to be elected the President of the United States. As a nation, it is insignificant us — but as an emerging neo-world, where barriers are falling to give way to change, it is a huge step. And as people living in these times, we are privileged to have been a witness to such historical moment in our lifetime.

It’s not as if we haven’t witnessed other historical moments. As a generation we saw America, the symbol of power and success, falling victim to terrorism that we Indians had been born with and could only feel and not explain.

We had our own significant moments: We tested our own nuclear weapon in our desert backyard and incurred global wrath; we gave the world a magician cricketer; our big small car made front-page headline all over the world. But these moments were not as significant as this: A half-black man, with a Muslim middle name, becoming the most powerful man in the world is something that doesn’t happen everyday.