The Lincolnian

Issue date: 1/25/09 Section: News

Media Credit: Milan Carter Kashka Turner standing tall and proud in front of the Capitol immediately after the inauguration of Barack Obama.

Media Credit: Milan Carter Fernando Mclean shows his American pride as he braved the cold weather to hear President Obama's speech.

Very few people were roaming across campus last Tuesday when the clock struck 12:00 p.m. Instead they clamored into dorm rooms, the cafeteria and the Ware Center Auditorium to watch as the nation inaugurated its first African American president.

Flyers announced watch parties and gathering sites for students to watch the inauguration of the 44th President, Barack Hussein Obama. And while classes were not officially cancelled, many students and professors made their way to the nearest television to watch history unfold.

In Frederick Douglass Hall, a male residential dormitory, students and Residential Coordinators gathered on couches, fold out chairs, and even tables to watch the swearing in of Obama. The occasion was so exciting that one student cried through Obama's entire speech.

"I was so happy and excited that I was crying the whole time he was speaking," said Amelia Sherwood.

Meanwhile, a group of Lincoln students boarded a bus in the early morning hours to travel to D.C. to join a million others as Obama took his oath.

"I cried when he won on Election Day, but I was too excited to cry this time," said Tiffany Jones, a senior.

Back on campus, a group of students gathered in the Ware Center Auditorium where they watched the event via projector screen. Local news station CBS3 was also present to film students' response to the happenings of the inauguration.

After Obama's address was finished and the inaugural ceremony was over, students dispersed from their various watch sites and met each other with jovial high fives and greetings such as, "Happy Obama day."

A student well known for her poetic ability hurried from her watch site to write about the impact the inauguration had on her.

"I can't believe this is actually happening," said Rienne Scott, a junior. "That is so powerful that Obama is president. He now runs the entire country while some men I know can't even get jobs."

While the general attitude about the day was very high and exciting, one student voiced his concern for the tasks ahead of Obama.

"One worry that I have is that his presidency is the dilution of a dream rather than its fruition. We still have a long way to go," said Christopher Lewis II, a senior.

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