On November 4, millions of Americans headed down to the polls to cast in their ballots for Barack Obama. We tuned in to our television sets to listen to his plan on how he was going to strengthen our country. Young, old, rich, poor, gay, and straight, his speeches gave us all a glimmer of hope for our futures. People from all walks of life found themselves chanting his famous phrase ‘Yes, we can’, they wore Obama pins, and Obama bumper stickers on their cars, it seemed as if the whole country was going through an Obama craze. Waiting in anticipation, we crossed our fingers and hoped Obama would be our next president when the polls closed.

I remember how I felt when I walked to the ballots to cast my vote. Excited, because this was the first time I was allowed to legally vote- and relieved, because our current president would be out of office in less than a few months. I walked back home with my ‘I’m a Georgia voter’ sticker proudly displayed on my left shoulder; because I knew voting made me a part of history. Polls closed, and my family and I gathered around the television to hear who won the election. I knew Obama would win the election, but I still felt a little nervous when the states in the west were done with their voting.

I sat on the couch and imagined how different our lives would be. When Obama spoke, I understood him, and he always managed to talk about topics that directly affected me in a language I could understand. He always made sure to include every one in his speeches, so no one was ever left out. Obama was a president I could relate to, and voting for him was the best decision I have ever made. I felt that if an African American man raised only by his grandparents and mother from a middle class background could be president, anything was possible.

Many young black Americans felt optimistic when Obama won. They set their standards higher, because they knew that nothing was able to stop them, no excuse was valid now that we had a black president. Not only has he broken down social barriers, he was able to over come the separation of his parents, the death of his mother and father, and he never accepted any funds from powerful lobbyists, so that helps you to believe that you do not need rich people, you just need a good idea and a strong campaign.