Americus celebrates Obama win

AMERICUS - As Sen. Barack Obama's victory became a reality Election night, many blacks in Americus expressed their amazement as well as joy over their next president. "An African-American president, it was just something that I thought I would never see in my lifetime," said 55-year-old Dr. Cleveland Mann, an Americus dentist. Matt Wright, 67, president of the local NAACP, expressed the same sentiment - adding that he didn't feel that enough white Americans were ready to vote for a black candidate.

"It's an historical event for blacks," said Wright. "Many blacks thought they would never live long enough to see this happen." The son of a black father from Kenya and a white mother from Kansas, the 47-year-old Democratic senator from Illinois sealed his victory by defeating Republican Sen. John McCain with 51 percent of the vote. That's in a nation that's about 14 percent black. "I was just never optimistic that enough whites could look past his color and see his qualifications," said Dr. John Marshall, and former president of the local National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. I supported Hillary Clinton in the primaries in order to avoid the race factor that I know would be the reason for Whites not voting for Obama. As God would have it, the American economic bottom fell out and Obama's numbers soared.

Obama won with a platform of "change" and he showed great poise and strength when the American economy melted down. Al Hurley was reelected Sumter County commissioner on the same night. But he is also a downtown Americus business owner who also has been hit by the recent economic downturn. He said it is about more than just color, he is optimistic that the well organized Obama can turn around the country. "I like his views on the economy and how he believes he's going to turn things around," said Hurley. "And I think he has the potential and intelligence to do all these things." The Rev. Melvin McCluster, Pastor of Friendship Church, said while he is "overjoyed" over his next president being black, he feels America just did the right thing. "God has laid him on the hearts of the American people," he said. "I feel like the American people elected the right man for office and this is going to benefit everyone."

Members of the black communities across the county have been celebrating Obama's victory since Election Day, even in Georgia where McCain won the state. But in Sumter County, GA Bryan Zulko of the Obama campaign said, "When Obama beat McCain 6,444 to 5,713 votes, the county turned "Blue." Wright said considering Obama was clearly the most qualified candidate in the election, he thought that racism still reared its head - as seen in most of the old Confederate states and a few states in the Western Plains where most Whites voted for McCain/Palin. "This shows how the Confederate mentality is alive and well here," Wright said.

McCluster added that he is looking forward to sitting back and seeing how Obama will run the country.

"I'm just hoping everyone, black and white, Democrats and Republicans, can put their differences aside and work with him," McCluster said.