We got the two following emails in from local listeners who traveled to Virginia last night for Obama’s final rally. Thought we would share them with you!
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Yesterday afternoon I got wind of a small caravan of cars leaving Baltimore for Barack’s Obama’s final campaign rally at the Prince William County fairgrounds in Manassas. My friend Valerie rode with me and came prepared with provisions of trail mix, chips & chocolate. Scheduled to leave at 3, we finally got on the road at 4. The gates were to open at 5 with event starting at 9 pm. But at around 7:30 pm, we were still in our cars at a dead stop on Rte. 234 about a mile from the fairgrounds. So we did a u-turn, parked on the sidewalk, and walked the rest of the way — but promptly lost our caravan group in the process.
In the fairgrounds at 8:15; Obama finally came on around 10:30. Valerie & I were 2 of about 100,000, and as short people, we were constantly on our tip toes dodging the heads in front of us.
Did I really see Obama? Yes but he was this tiny fuzzy image in a cloud of fog & dust.
Was it worth it? Absolutely! Even after dealing with poor logistics, a rude state trooper and not arriving back home until 3 a.m. Being in the presence of the first African-American president (we hope, go vote), whose talking points I was long familiar with, had me awe-struck.
And as enthusiastic as the crowd was during the rally, everyone was equally polite and congenial leaving (despite feeling like a herd of cattle squeezing through the exit gates). It was an amazingly diverse crowd — black, white, hispanic, muslim, babies, teens, families and grammies like me.
It was a good and worthy 12-hour adventure.
-Clare
I went down to Obama’s final rally, in Manassas, last night. It was so amazing – the energy was beautiful. The message of hope, moving forward, civility, and how one voice can change the world was reflected in the genuine respect that each person there showed every other person. (Under less than desirable conditions!) Young black “yo boys” next to white-haired grandmothers next to round-faced Latino workers next to Muslim women in scarves.I had heard the words many times, but being in that crowd I understood – down to my bones – how positive sentiments of truth, peace, and love can transform (in this case, 100,000 people). It was a reminder of the lesson I am grappling with each day, to let go of the negativity of the past and surrender to the extraordinary potential of this day.
-Valerie
