The American Vote Champions Racial Equality

Since the historic victory of Barack Obama, the first African-American to be elected to the most powerful presidency in the world, world opinion has turned more favorable towards the American people. It recognizes and cheers the fact that they have come to their senses and turned out to vote for change - a massive change. Their overwhelming vote for Barack Obama is a loud statement that they reject almost everything that was done in their name in the past eight years under the dynasty of the Bush family and its corrupt cronies in the corridors of corporate America. They made a massive democratic vote to elect a leader of their own choice this time and thus repudiate the appointment of Bush by the Republican-nominated US Supreme Court after a flawed election that was stolen from Al Gore. By choosing an African-American as the most qualified to lead their nation, they sent another powerful message - that the age of racism and white supremacy in America is coming to an end.

World opinion is already rising with great hope inspired by president-elect Obama. The greatness and goodness in America is reemerging in a person that represents the racially oppressed, not only people-of-color in America, but oppressed and discriminated people everywhere. The reaction of many, especially Africans, is to say "He is one of us, he will understand". After the dark night of its soul under the Bush administration, the victory of Obama and all he represents lifts America in world opinion. It could hardly have been lower. The approval rating of President George W. Bush is the lowest ever of any American president. Eight years of the Republican Party leaders pulling the puppet strings of a disastrously misguided George W. Bush to satisfy their insatiable greed for power, money and skullduggery, damaged the good name of Americans in the eyes of the world and led to countless deaths and enormous suffering and the near destruction of Iraq. They peddled their political idolatry that "might makes right" and made implacable enemies and provoked retaliation. The voices calling for peace and opposed to war and confrontation were squashed and ridiculed but today they are recognized as the path to peace and security.

I believe the nightmare will soon be over but recovery and healing will take many years. The American people must never forget how they let it happen and never allow false fears, empty rhetoric, exaggerated dangers to blind their reason and cloud their better judgment of what is truly right and just. The years of appalling apathy to the violation of human rights dragged the nation down. They were years marked by war mongering, violation of human rights, the tolerance of torture, prison abuse, abduction, environmental destruction and the present economic disaster that has impoverished millions of people in America and around the world. All this in the name of a loving God made present through Jesus of Nazareth, who condemned such despicable acts unworthy of any human being and especially the American people.

It is not up to Barack Obama to redeem the nation alone, but to the American people. They must work together to undo the harm and hurt of the past eight years and make peace with the world. The fact that a young newly risen politician, an African-American, has been trusted for this task of saving America is a glowing tribute to his supporters that cast aside race and skin color as a determining factor in the worth and value of a person for such a monumental responsibility.

I hope his victory will give greater pride to people of color everywhere, and those nasty bill boards in the Philippines promoting skin whitening will be ignored and removed. They promote racists products that insult Filipino dignity by insinuating that dark skin color is the mark of racial inferiority and in effect, they say that being white-skinned is superior. Wrong - It is not. The victory of Barack Hussein Obama has just proven that for all to see, and we thank the people who elected him as President of the United States for that.