Dakota was very excited about election day. In fact, he was looking forward to it for weeks! He asked us who we were voting for. When we told him we would be voting for Obama, he of course decided that he was an Obama supporter, too. He was always listening to the news and taking in as much election information as a first grader can. They even had an election in his class. He said that 16 kids voted for Obama and 9 for McCain.
When we got up Wednesday morning and we told Dakota that Obama won, he was so excited! We were excited, too. Not only because he is the candidate that we supported, but because of how far this country has come. It is not that long ago that people who did not have white skin had to drink from separate drinking fountains, ride on the back of the bus and attend separate schools and now we will have a president who is black.
I was extremely disappointed when I got to school Wednesday morning and heard what my high school students had to say. Many students made remarks about Obama being shot, saying he is Arab, not a US citizen, I even heard a comment about Kool-Aid! It is really disheartening to witness such a momentous event, only to hear those hateful comments. Anyone who thinks racism isn't alive and well is mistaken. We have always tried to make sure that our kids understand that it doesn't matter where a person is from, what color their skin is or what language they speak. Unfortunately, it is only a matter of time before our kids are exposed to these hateful beliefs. I only hope that our influence will continue to be strongest.
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