Real Change News | Rev. Rich Lang: Obama needs help

November 12, 2008
Vol: 15 No: 47

Rev. Rich Lang

Rev. Rich Lang: Obama needs help

by: Rev. Rich Lang

Faith, Culture, Politics

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It is a glorious new day in America and everything seems possible once again. The long nightmare of the Bush administration is almost over. The window of democracy that had been slammed down and sealed shut has now been pried open and fresh winds are reviving those of us who have been so deeply downcast.

I realize that President Obama cannot save us nor even restore the glory of democracy and honor to our nation. We ourselves have to do that. We ourselves have to be the solid backbone that assists President Obama into fulfilling his rhetoric. But the rhetoric is important. His visionary words of reconciliation and hope can inspire the public imagination to dream new dreams and to believe again in better days ahead. His election alone has put a much needed spring back into the national footstep. Obama’s rhetoric empowers us to once again reassert ourselves as political actors and responsible citizens. If for no other reason than this, we owe Barack Obama a debt of gratitude.

But to govern is different than to campaign. Indeed it is easy to preach but harder to practice one’s preaching. He will need help to defend against those rogues and bullies that do not love us and who could care less whether or not democracy lives or dies. President Obama will need help if he is to overcome the temptation towards politics-as-usual. He will need our help to become a great man of history. He will need the courage of our own example.

I am hopeful that President Obama and a Democratic Congress will reestablish the rule of law, temper military expansion, discipline our intelligence agencies, care for the earth, and, yes, redistribute the wealth from the investor class to the working class. I am hopeful that labor will once again be thought of as primary, with capital taking its seat as secondary. I am hopeful that a new spirit of commonwealth can take root in our national politics.

But hope requires more than wishful thinking. Hope requires the persistence of actions — small step-by-step strategic actions — that always keep the goal of justice constantly front and center. President Obama can do a lot. He can lead, and we need leaders. But we need to do our share too. We need to continue our advocacy for the homeless, for economic redistribution, for a reduction of the military, for a commitment to sustainability. We need to be the example that President Obama can use to call this nation to shared sacrifice and mutual prosperity.

We have a leader. We have a new window of opportunity. Let us commit to helping him open the window wider both for us and for all peoples in a common quest for justice. The window has opened, a fresh air has entered, and there is a sense that joy will return to our land.

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