President Barack Obama took the oath of office on the steps of a building built by slaves. With this inauguration he ushers in great cultural change as the first African American president. A hopeful departure from the discrimination of the past as people of all races and cultures came together to celebrate this day.
But the enormity of the task that lies ahead, while steeped in the historical significance, is also about the immediate present and the challenges of the future. His job as president begins infused with a wealth of good will, but the journey is so uncertain. Change is the only true certainty. And that climate will define his new work life scenario.
Mr. Obama was inaugurated as an icon of change in a time of tumultuous economic and political challenges. As an orator he has galvanized the world, as president he takes on a new job under the microscope of public scrutiny. His job is 24/7. Every move, every moment, will be recorded -commented upon – and judged in a new world of an always/on media climate.
Just as his campaign interconnected the world in an unprecedented way, so will his presidency. It’s been hoped that as he continues to assemble his team – it will not be centrist, but instead post partisan. That would indeed be change.
It is hoped that President Obama can end two wars, heal relationships with other countries, resolve the global economic crisis, create some special prescription for unemployment, battle poverty and save the middle class. There are huge problems, and even bigger expectations. But as Arianna Huffington, of the Huffington Post proclaimed the night before the inauguration on CNN from the ball she hosted in Washington D.C., ” It’s imperative not to look at him as a knight in shining armor, we have to do our part.”
In his inaugural address President Obama called upon the American people to accept the responsibility of being a citizen. There was no sugar coating that the future will be an easy path, but instead words of reality that there are challenges to be met, storms to come. Essentially he called upon the American public to weather the storms with courage – not alone – but in union and with clarity. As President Obama said in his address – he’s calling on Americans to have , ”A willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves.”
