Witnesses to History
Lions’ alumni, students, and staff were in attendance to witness the inauguration of the nation’s first African-American president. Several were kind enough to share their recollections from that historic day.
Lions’ alumni, students, and staff were in attendance to witness the inauguration of the nation’s first African-American president. Several were kind enough to share their recollections from that historic day.
From Tyshawn Jenkins ’04:
I headed to Washington, DC the day before the inauguration. I spent some time in Delaware and listened to (then) President-elect Obama speak, and met him and his wife during the whistle-stop tour. I traveled with the press. There was a lot of excitement for getting down there so I took the opportunity to leave early rather than leaving the day of and having little or no chance of getting into the city. To my surprise it was not that difficult getting into the city that morning at around 4 a.m.
Fortunately, I was able to secure a closer spot to watch the inaugural proceedings because I had a press pass. However, even with a press pass getting closer to the Capitol seemed to be more about luck or chance. I guess not being as close as I would have liked did have it benefits. While walking around on the lawn between the Washington Monument and the Capitol building, I ran into Samuel L. Jackson and Stevie Wonder. I also had an opportunity to be interviewed by a Fox News reporter. After asking me about my own personal experience at the inauguration, I was asked by the reporter to take questions from children in Obama’s elementary school back in Hawaii
The atmosphere was wonderful—there was a lot of love. People were hanging from trees…and sitting on the shoulders of family members. It felt like at that moment no matter what your race, class, or gender was, you were among family. I know God had to feel a little better about His creation that day. I met so many kind people, but one gentleman that stands out in my mind the most was Ruben Weeks from Seattle. While making sure everyone was warm (which was close to impossible in 22-degree weather), he also shared his bag full of fruit and snacks with everyone around him. I had been cautious not to bring food or beverages with me that day because of security concerns so Mr. Weeks was my Good Samaritan. Most of us had been up, traveling and standing for over eight hours or longer, so this man giving us something to eat made a world of difference. I swear the apple he offered me tasted like fillet minion at that moment.
The feelings that I experienced during that historic day were ones that I could never describe without losing some of the essence of what was going on. However, being present in Washington, DC, I felt as if I was experiencing a sacred event as well as being given a torch to carry on such a timely movement. As an African American, that day will always hold a special place in my heart. I was thinking about all the slaves, my ancestors, and those who have fought for equal rights whether black, white, or any other race. Being at an event like this gave me an insight of how it must have felt for those who were in attendance at the I Have a Dream speech.
From James Moore ’88:
Dr. Karriem Salaam ’93 and I stayed at the home of a fellow alumnus, Henry R. Felix ’91, in Colombia, MD, the night before the inauguration. We arose at 4 a.m. on Inauguration Day and drove to the College Park campus to catch the metro into DC. We parked in a parking deck for a nominal price, walked to the local metro, and encountered a small crowd of people looking to get tickets in and out of DC.
Truth be told, it was a cold experience. Once we arrived in DC, what amazed me was how wide-awake and energized people were at 6 a.m., cheering and chanting as we all made our way to the mall area. What made the cold bearable, at times, from early that morning until our departure, was seeing the throngs of people experience the same cold weather. Those warmers for our feet and hands were useless!
On the mall grounds at the inauguration, I prayed with almost two million others, because of my children. As the father of a daughter (Miranda Alexis) and especially two young boys (James Jr. and Joshua Robeson), they now have no excuses. Barack Obama helped destroy the impossible. Racism has not gone away, but the hurdle to overcome was knocked down a peg.
I believe President Obama will represent many things to people of different ages, race, sex, generations and nationalities. But his ascendancy to the highest office on the planet has more to do with two important things: validation and qualification. President Obama is the ultimate seal (authentic and qualified) of what is great about America. While an argument of race can be debated, President Obama was one of the most qualified and skilled candidates to ever run for President of the United States.
President Barack Obama validated the struggle. Last year, I cried on election night because then-Senator Obama bridged the worst of America’s history (slavery and discrimination) with the hope of a better tomorrow. That Inauguration Day I cried tears of joy and pain, because President Obama and I benefited from the sacrifices (especially death) of those who labored on our behalf.
President Obama is the ultimate symbol of a struggle in which Thurgood Marshall, Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Dr. Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Minister Farrakhan, Paul Robeson, Rev. Jessie Jackson, Al Sharpton, and so many others waged. Whether you agree or not with their ideology, these icons all wanted something better for their children. They spoke out. They stood up. They fought. They died. They knew the wrong in others when we were judged on our skin color or sex. So while President Obama is both a post-Civil Rights baby and the embodiment of being just an American (verses African American), he’s the representation (i.e., man-child) of the struggle.
From Jason Neely, TCNJ staff member:
On a cold January morning, I witnessed history.
My traveling companions and I were all a bit cranky. We had to get out of bed to make the 4 a.m. Metro into DC, but we had good reason to believe that if we left any later, we’d miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. My college friend, Stu, had put us up for the few hours rest in Bowie, MD. As he kicked us out of the car with provisions for the day, he called to us “You’re all Nuts!” While he’d offered to drive us to the station, he preferred to relax in the comfort of his living room watching the day’s events unfold on TV and avoiding the soon-to-be ensuing traffic nightmare surrounding our nation’s capital.
The passengers in the half-mile-long line waiting to board the trains seemed in good spirits; even the Detroit Police squad regulating the flow of revelers seemed unnaturally cheerful for the earliness of the hour and being so far from home. That collegial spirit of common purpose and national pride would intensify throughout the day and become its strongest memory.
Our commemorative inaugural metro tickets, emblazoned with the face of our soon-to-be 44th President, took us to La Enfant Plaza where the over-capacity crowd cheered, “O-BAM-A! O-BAM-A!” Like lemmings we were funneled with the river of other over-stuffed winter-coats up the escalators and through the eerily quiet streets, which were absent of all vehicles save the now-empty tour buses.
Arriving on the National Mall just before dawn, we made our way to a suitable truck-sized video screen just opposite the Smithsonian Castle. (We would later refer this as the “third jumbo-tron on the right” to those who viewed the broadcast.) It was a bitter cold and windy morning, and now that we had stopped moving, the chill began to settle in. Even wrapped in multiple layers with thermals, wool socks, warm gloves, and thick scarves we knew we were in for a cold day.
As the crowd thickened, the screens started to replay select parts of the “We Are One” inaugural celebration concert from a few nights earlier. Mary J. Blige, Herbie Hancock, Shakira, and “The Boss” kept the crowd bobbing to tunes, which kept us warm. When Garth Brooks and choir sang “Jump and Shout,” the crowd bounced in rhythm; when Bono sang “Pride in the Name of Love,” there were frozen tears on the faces and a forest of waving American flags. National pride and a genuine spirit of community prevailed.
Soon the roll call of national leaders built our anticipation, and as Joe Biden appeared cheers rolled down the mall. By the time “Hail to the Chief” announced the 44th President of the United States, the crowd had shaken off the chill and was thumping with mitten-muffled applause. A few brief but inspiring speeches later, history had been made.
We spent the afternoon in Air and Space Museum enjoying some of our nation’s history while warming our frozen extremities. I was interviewed by ABC’s Philadelphia bureau, but I was so numb from cold and sleeplessness that I later did not even recall the interview. As the mall emptied of fellow citizenry we saw some of the parade floats and marching bands in the staging area and then found a Metro to take us home.
Barack Obama is an eloquent and engaging leader; that day on the national mall I was reminded why I am proud to be an American. I was truly inspired to take an earnest look at our nation and get down to the business of solving long-ignored questions. It is a relief to have our nation’s leadership be frank about issues we are facing, to be asked to make individual change, and be encouraged to collaborate with our global citizens to make a difference. But what I will remember most from that day is the spirit of a citizenship with purpose, a common providence, and genuine national pride—and the bone chilling cold.
From Beth Tobin ’01:
Imagine being able to stand among millions of people and share one of the greatest moments in America’s history. That’s what I was able to do when I joined millions of other Americans on the National Mall as I witnessed Barrack Obama become the 44th President of the United States.
I set out at 4:30 in the morning with a small group. We began the day at the New Carrolton Metro stop, standing in a line that was nearly a mile long, waiting to board the train. Spirits were high though, and everyone was in a great mood. The train ride into the city went smoothly, and after they released the gates at our final metro stop (for those out-of-towners not familiar with the workings of the metro ticket) we followed the masses to the National Mall, arriving at 7:30 a.m.
The spirit of America was high as we watched the concert from two days prior on large jumbo-trons, and danced to Garth Brooks singing “Shout!”. I have never been in such a large group where everyone was so friendly, polite, and courteous. It was cold, and blustery, but people remain in good spirits. It was clearly evident of times to come.
Finally, as the inauguration began four hours later, the crowd erupted and came to life. Watching members of Congress, former Presidents, and finally the new administration arrive on the Capital steps was exciting. Perhaps even more exciting was the feeling I shared with so many others as Barack Obama and Joe Biden took their oaths of office.
From Ali Quirk ’09, a music education major who marched in the 56th Presidential Inaugural Parade:
The Cadets had a camp preparing for their competitive marching season, and a day and a half of rehearsal for the parade. We performed a mock parade for a local retirement community that was well received by the town. This was good preparation for the cold we would face in DC!
We woke up at 1:15 the morning of the Inauguration and left Woodstown, NJ, at 2:30 a.m. We stopped at a checkpoint on the way to the Capitol so we could be admitted as a performing group. We went through thorough airport-style security around 6:45 a.m., and returned to the buses around 8 a.m. After a few hours of sleep, we drove into the city itself. I have never seen so many people in my life! People climbing on trees, sitting on top of port-a-potties—the Washington Monument seemed not to come up from the ground, but from a sea of heads with different colored winter hats.
Eventually, we parked and got out of the buses in full uniform and entered one of the many large “warming tents” to watch the President get sworn in. We were able to watch on TV screens and sound systems set up inside the tents. People were cheering and applauding various parts of his speech. This was an exciting experience—groups ranging from high school bands to Marines to police forces all mixed together. It was very humbling and unifying to realize that we all had something in common that one day. This part of the day was filled with hope.
As for the parade itself, we began the half-mile walk to the start of the parade at 12:30. We did not step off to begin the parade until 5:30! This was a very long time to be standing in the cold. I heard that the temperature was 16 with a wind chill much lower! Such low temperatures demanded that we find ways to keep warm. Going through this together bonded our group, and I believe that we are closer as a result.
I did get to catch a fleeting glimpse of the President in his reviewing stand as we passed. I did not want my gaze to linger because I was afraid I would stick out my horn or shako (the hat that is part of our uniforms) at the wrong angle!
Heading out of the city was not very difficult. Our buses were waiting for us at the end of the parade route. Because of the delays due to the illness of Senator Kennedy, many people had given in to the cold and left before the parade itself. This allowed for a relatively traffic-free ride home.
I don’t think I realized it at the time, since we were all so overwhelmed with the events of the day and the extreme cold, but I feel extremely honored to have been a part of this moment in history. The celebration seemed full of hope and positive visions of the future. Perhaps it was because I was in the city itself rather than just watching from home, but I was captivated by President Obama’s words, and the support he had from all present was tangible.
Posted on March 11, 2009