monumental

My initial reaction to Obama announcing his support for same-sex marriage was less than stellar. Trust me, it shocked me too. But, the first thing I thought was, "WHAT IS HE THINKING? HOW COULD HE HAVE EVER THOUGHT THAT MAKING THIS ANNOUNCEMENT BEFORE THE ELECTION WAS A GOOD IDEA?!" And yes, using all caps for these thoughts is necessary. In fact, I'm sure that my entire chat conversation with Brad, who bears the brunt of all of my initial reactions, was in caps. I was literally terrified that it was over. That there was no way he was going to win reelection now. 


As I stared at the screen I heard my dad's voice in my head. Just as plain as day. He said, "It's over Christa. Obama doesn't have a snowball's chance in Hell to win reelection." Then I imagined him giggling and performing a little victory dance in front of me with that smirky grin he always had during moments like this. I was completely bummed. 

Later that night my political strategist mind finally gave in and let me look at this with my bleeding heart instead. I was overcome with pride. There have actually been several moments over the past 3 years of Obama's presidency when I have felt a sense of pride, but never like I did in this moment. I suddenly understood how monumental this was. The president of the United States, the most powerful person in our country, in the world, was voicing his support for gay rights and equality. ...wow!


This is something I wasn't sure I would ever see in my lifetime. It's actually astonishing how much hatred of gay people still exists in the world. Obama obviously believes in this issue so much that he is willing to risk his reelection and his reputation among world leaders. And then I wondered what it must feel like to be a gay person in this moment.  If I, as a white American straight woman, felt this much pride and excitement, it must be extremely overwhelming for them. 


I still don't know if I will ever actually see gay marriage become legal in the entire United States in my lifetime. There is a lot of work to be done, but just over the past few years a lot of strides have been made. And Obama's announcement was a giant leap in the movement. Here are a few of my favorite things in the wake of it all. 


Jane Lynch on Rachel Maddow - The Best New Thing In The World Today