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When Sen. Barack Obama took the stage in Grant Park to address America for the first time as president-elect, millions saw something they had never seen before: an African-American president. Many also felt something they had never felt before: happiness on election night.
This reaction was certainly true for several Roosevelt University students."I felt happy," said Sebastain Dinu, a senior majoring in Criminal Justice. Dinu also said that, beyond electing a new president, America entered into a new era."It was very interesting; the new president, the new ideas and definitely his age," Dinu said. "It is something different, something fresh."
Even though Nov. 4 marked the election of a new president for the U. S., people from different countries also took notice.
"It was very interesting to see how people from a different culture celebrate an election," said Maria Mokshina, a first-year graduate student from Russia. Even though Mokshina is a Russian citizen, she was still "very excited to see the result." When she saw people of all different races coming together at Grant Park, she felt it was a "new step for America."
And, she thinks Obama is the right person to usher in this "new step." "Obama is the person who can bring all of you together," said Mokshina.
Tykesha Byndum, a senior at Roosevelt, also had strong emotions when Obama was elected.
"Honestly, I cried the whole night, it was really touching," said Byndum. Byndum was not alone in her tears. Anyone tuning into the coverage of Grant Park could see many people wiping away tears of happiness. Nov. 4 was an emotional and joyful night for many. It was also a night that was quite different than the election night Byndum had in 2004.
Byndum voted in the 2004 election, and was thankful this year's election turned out differently. "After the last election, I thought 'I am never going to vote in my life,' but I changed my mind for this one."She acknowledged that even though the election is over, the journey is not complete. "Obama's biggest struggle for his first year will be cleaning up Bush's mess," Byndum said.
Dinu agreed that big tasks are ahead for Obama.
"Cleaning up the mess and just trying to set things straight and right, that would be something huge," Dinu said. "Not just big, but huge." Dinu, Mokshina and Byndum
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