Obama in Fayetteville, NC

Howdy Folks! Well, the Obama tour took me today to Fayetteville, NC. I had never been to this mostly military town, and was excited to head there with my best friend Kym, who came all the way from NYC to volunteer for the weekend! Why has Obama made so many appearances in our small state of NC, you may ask? Because though we may be a "hidden gem," known for our sweet tea- at election time, we hold 15 electoral votes that, if won by Obama, could set him over the edge to become the next President of the United States. God willing! Excitingly, this state has not gone blue since 1972, but from the looks of what's happening on the ground, this state might actually be the deciding factor!

This was my fourth time seeing Obama (after Jerusalem, Denver, and Asheville). This time, unlike the others, I had tears flowing down my cheeks throughout his speech- as he spoke about Colin Powell's endorsement, how it speaks to the nature of this campaign, how it brings people together- "Blacks, Whites, Hispanic, Native American, democrat, and republican" we are all American. As I looked at the faces around me, there were two things that I noted. The first is that the crowd, though it had all sorts of people, was a majority of African-Americans. As we interviewed whites and blacks, I couldn't help but feel inspired that this is exactly what this country needs. Electing Obama will help to heal the wounds of slavery, segregation, and race relations in this country. Electing our first African-American President will enable us to talk about our identities, our race, our experiences- and rather than divide us, I believe that Obama will, and already has, unite us in our common desire to believe in a better America for all people. Yes We Can!

I also noted that there was a high percentage of army families. In fact, the woman who introduced Obama is an army wife whose husband is risking his life for our country and yet who still cannot afford to make ends meet. Video in hand, we interviewed several Veterans for Obama, who talked about his stance on Veterans Issues, including the GI Bill for the 21st Century (which McCain voted AGAINST), and the need to bring our troops home safely and then help them reintegrate back into society.

I'll post videos of today up shortly. I left today feeling inspired, feeling hopeful that we can turn this country around towards a brighter tomorrow for us and our children.