We Are Barak Hussein Obama

Delia Armstrong Busby was the first African American principal in Colorado Springs and the first to serve on the District 11 Board of Education.
Provided by: Delia Armstrong Busby


The inauguration of Barack Obama leads me to these reflections---

The people of Colorado Springs were poised for change when Barack Hussein Obama appeared on the electoral scene. My first wave of "what in the world is happening here?" occurred during the democratic caucus in our neighborhood which is near Wasson High School.

My husband (Ron) and I arrived at Audubon Elementary School to find the largest democratic turnout in30 years. The next eye-opener was the campaign field workers at the Obama Party the evening of the caucus.

As newly selected Obama caucus delegates, Ron and I were surprised when we entered the Party at Phantom Canyon, to find a room full of energetic 20-somethings with faces aglow with happy and voices bubbly with "Yes, we can". It quickly reminded me of my days of high school supervision when the highlight of the evening might be stopping some youthful PDA (public display of affection). But the only PDA I found at Phantom Canyon was a philosophical love affair for Barack Obama.

This is my first experience with impassioned, youthful, campaigners in large numbers. To me it signals the changing of the generational guard. I am impressed.

Since moving to Colorado Springs in 1969, I have always had a personal sense of what I can do. And within this community, I have had the professional and personal opportunity of many firsts. This includes being the first African American female to be appointed to a high school principalship. In 1999, I became the first African American female elected to the Colorado Springs District Eleven School Board in over 140 years. Because of these experiences, the election of Barack Obama never seemed out of reach to me.

I certainly have been at the forefront of educational change in Colorado Springs for nearly40 years. My conclusion is that the community is empowering based on its perception of your ability to make a meaningful contribution. Obama arrived on the scene of a community hip-deep in a desire for better. A community still wanting to believe that America can indeed renew itself with the best leadership. There was and is a strong feeling of "we can be better" and "we can do better." Further, there are still numbers of people willing to extend themselves to make it so.

Since his election, the Obama team has been in constant touch keeping the dream of a renewed America alive. A day of service is being encouraged this month. The push for all of us to better our community by acting to make improvement or to just make a personal contribution to the common good is inspiring. We are Barack Hussein Obama. We make him possible because we make dreams come true when we continue to say yes to change and to hope and to seeing the possibilities of the new reality that emerges on Tuesday January 20, 2009.



Currently listening to:
Yes We Can: Voices of a Grassroots Movement (Barack Obama)
Released on: November 11, 2008
By: Various Artists and Barack Obama