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Black residents respond to historic victory
Illinois Sen. Barack Obama made history as the first black person to be nominated by a major party for the presidency of the United States, and he made history again with his victory Nov. 4.
Members of Loudoun’s black community share their reactions.
The Rev. Reginald A. Early
The Rev. Reginald A. Early, 47, lives in Middleburg. He is president of the Loudoun chapter of the NAACP. He is also minister of two churches: Mount Zion United Methodist Church in Purcellville and the Willisville United Methodist Church.
“I am just ecstatic,” he said. “... I’m just glad to be alive at this point in time in American history, to be a part of it.”
Early said he had never thought he would see this in his lifetime. “I think it’s a monumental step in America for race relations,” he said.
He said it's good for people to see that “an African-American has the ability, the competency to lead America to change for the better for all people.”
Early recalled the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., saying, “One of the things I keep remembering is Dr. King saying we will get to the promised land. And I do think this is the beginning of getting to the beginning of getting to that promised land. ... Now there is a sense of hope.”
Early cautioned that Obama still has tremendous challenges to meet.
“It won’t be easy. The challenge is ahead of him, but he really is up to the challenge. ... We the people also have to be involved in working with him and working together for the changes that are needed in this country.”
Lou Etta Watkins
Lou Etta Watkins, of Leesburg, is 80 years old. She is on the Thomas Balch Library Advisory Commission and Balch’s Black History Committee. She is a member of the NAACP and the Leesburg Democratic Committee.
“I’ve seen a lot of changes in my time,” Watkins said. "... The world is altogether different. The world has gotten through integration and learned to live with mixed marriages. I just want the dream to be a reality, because when you have a dream you have to wake up.”
Watkins said, “[Sen. Obama] does what he says and he says what he does. He’s not just fooling around.” But like Early, she issued a word or two of caution:
“He won’t be a perfect president, but there isn’t any such animal. So I kind of think it’s going to work, and I don’t think it’s just because he’s African-American. I think it’s just because he’s an intelligent person.”
Wendall Fisher
Sterling resident Wendall Fisher, 54, is the outreach supervisor for Loudoun County Public Schools. He is a member of the Ruritans and a supporter of Young Safe Havens.
“I knew it would happen because of the phenomenal times I have lived [through],” he said. “... I’ve been through integration. I’ve been bused. And I’ve seen the leaders assassinated.
“We have been through some of the worst times, but as a nation we have always progressed and stepped forward. ... The people’s voice was heard.”
Fisher indicated that Obama’s nomination should not have been a huge surprise.
“I’ve always voted for a white person,” Fisher said. “Quality is quality. So why should I take this any differently? All I want is a president who represents the American people, who represents our best interests.”
Fisher also reminded people to keep everything in perspective.
“It’s up to the man, his tenure, to make that great,” Fisher said. “Yes, we are proud of him. Now let’s move on and get the job done.”
Fisher said he and his wife, Kendall, were in line at Sugarland Elementary before 5:30 a.m. Nov. 4.
“This is our piece of time,” he said.
Fisher said he was looking forward to change.
“Things are going to be different because we made them different,” he said. “We have to help him.”
Mattie Lassiter
Mattie Lassiter, 72, lives in Purcellville. She was named one of the three women of the year by the Loudoun Times-Mirror in 2004 for her work with the Carver Senior Center in Purcellville. She also serves the Second Mount Olive Baptist Church in multiple capacities.
“I am not surprised that [a black person] came along who was not only qualified to run for president, but has proved ... that he is very, very knowledgeable,” Watkins said. “What he doesn’t know, he selects and surrounds himself with very, very knowledgeable people.”
She said the change Obama promised was badly needed after the past eight years.
“It’s not just electing a new president, it's electing a change of the way things are done in Washington, D.C.,” she said. “This is probably the most important election that I will see in my lifetime, in our history.”
Terri Randolph
Terri Randolph, of Leesburg, is 33. She is a marketing executive for an IT consulting firm. She supports efforts of the Douglass Alumni Association, the Loudoun chapter of the NAACP and the Black History Committee of the Thomas Balch Library.
Did she ever think she would see an African-American on the ballot for president of the United States?
“I thought I would see it, but maybe when I was in my 50s or 60s,” Randolph said.
Randolph indicated that even years after Civil Rights legislation was passed, the prejudice was and is still there.
“I remember growing up in a predominantly white area, not actually getting the straight racism, but you definitely could see it, feel it,” Randolph said. “Even in the professional world, it's not overt but it's there. ... So even that it could be possible, that it could happen, makes me so proud to be an American.”
Randolph has seen firsthand how the generation coming behind her has grown up in a world very different from hers where prejudice is concerned.
“My niece is 17,” Randolph said. “She would have no clue whatsoever. She's so far removed from it.”
As far as Randolph is concerned, now that Obama has emerged victorious, it can only get better.
“The fact that he is a black is great, but the important thing is to look past that,” she said. “Look at his intelligence, his integrity, his demeanor, the way he carries himself no matter what. That's what you want in a president, and that's what you get.”
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