Yea America!

Since I woke up this morning, all I could do was think about voting. Not just necessarily the election in Illinois for Governor and Senate, (Go Dems!!!!) but just thinking about voting and what it means to Black people. As I have mentioned many times, My parents are immigrants from Ghana, West Africa. They got here in the 1970's but it was not until 1996 that they became American Citizens. My mom still talks about how it was one of the happiest days of her life when she got her citizenship, she was so happy the first time she voted for President Clinton's second term. It meant a lot to my daddy too, even though he didn't show it (men...). They were proud to have been part of the democratic process. And to think that When my parents originally turned 18 years old they wouldn't have been able to vote if they had been in this country since Black people were not allowed to vote until 1964. To think of all the sit-ins and marches people took part in, to think of all the beatings and bite marks from dogs and burns from water hoses people had on their bodies, just for us to punch a hole in a piece of paper, or as of the last couple of years, connect two arrows together with a marker. It makes me feel proud to be a part of it. I take my baby girl with me to the polls almost every election too because I want her to understand how important it is. I've been taking her ever since she was in my tummy and we voted for Gore in 2000. Next election in 2012, my son will be accompanying us as well. As bad as things are now, we have to remember that we still live in the greatest country in America so thanks to everyone who voted and for the people who didn't, don't complain about the outcome later.