Inauguration

Today was my first day of classes, but thankfully, I got out of one class early so I could stop in the Dodd Center to watch the inauguration on CNN.

I got there just in time to see Biden sworn in. Then there was a musical selection, at which time, CNN informed us that Obama was officially president because the Constitution states that he would be president by noon, whether or not he was sworn in yet. That was pretty awesome.

Watching Obama get sworn in was very moving. It was everything we've been waiting for since the beginning of his campaign trail. When he gave his inaugural speech, it was inspiring. He touched on all the problems the nation faces, but he also gave hope to a brighter future, and I can't help but believe that things will be better under his leadership. I liked that he mentioned that his father, less than 60 years ago, would not have been served at a local restaurant, gesturing at the fact that America has come a long way in electing its first black president. I liked that the inauguration was the day after Martin Luther King, Jr. day. I liked that Obama specifically mentioned the troubled economy and spoke directly to terrorists, saying that power comes from building, not destroying. I liked that in spite of all the bad things that he mentioned, he gave reasons for hope. That's what America needed, and for the first time in my life, I'm excited for the next four years under a certain presidency.

And I have to add, I thought it was the cutest thing ever when CNN zoomed in on Malia Obama taking photos/video on her digital camera and looking absolutely intent on it.

Summary of Most of November

I am very happy about the election of Barack Obama.
Election Day was nerve racking.
We had a great Election Day party.
We went to see Rockapella 2 days later.
That was pretty cool, especially since they sang the Folgers' theme song and "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?"
I had a real hankering to watch "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?"
And then the last weeks before Thanksgiving break happened, so I was swamped in school work, which meant that I couldn't fully blog about all this.
And did I mention that I was really happy about Election Day?

10/17 The Guerilla Girls

I have been fascinated by the Guerilla Girls' movement since I learned about them in a women's studies class freshman year. Who were these women in gorilla masks? How were they so funny?

I've noticed their posters around New York City a few times, and I love what they have to say. Basically, they're feminists who want more equality in the art world. They wear gorilla masks and take the names of dead female artists to remain anonymous and focus the attention on their cause, not themselves. Their posters and advertisements highlight that most of the artists in major museums are white men. They also note that film awards often go to white men. They pretty much shout these statistics out in their posters, and by doing so, they call for social change.

The Guerilla Girls event, or demonstration, at the Jorgensen Center for Performing Arts at UConn included a video introduction of various Guerilla Girls in protests and just doing wacky things around cities with their posters and how much their work has raised awareness. Then they talked about their books and laid out some more statistics, always using humor. They asked the audience members to raise their hands if they would call themselves a feminist, and they got an overwhelmingly majority of hands and cheers - though, most of the people who would see them, especially when you had to buy tickets, would already be fans. The fact is, few people want to call themselves feminists because the word has such a negative connotation. A lot of people think that the word "feminist" applies to radical feminists or man-haters, but really, a feminist supports women and issues like the right to choose an abortion, equal pay for equal work and equal representation in career fields.

My favorite line of the night came when they showed a color-coded threat-level chart, much like the one that is used for the state of our national security. In this case, they offered levels of women's rights security. One of the highest threats included the government believing that abstinence was the best form of contraception and only teaching this in schools. In response to reading this one out loud, one of the Guerilla Girls said, "and let's not elect a vice president who believes this." On the Palin issue, while they didn't seem happy with Palin calling herself a "feminist," one of them did note that Palin has never apologized for being both a politician and a mother, which is a good thing.

The event was just a fun time, filled with laughs about stereotypical dolls and expectations of women, and I left feeling pretty good about being a feminist.

The McCain Debate Question

I just wrote a commentary to run in tomorrow's Daily Campus about this, but I just really believe that McCain should show up to the presidential candidate debate tomorrow. It's already scheduled. The fact that McCain would not show up because he's working on the economic crisis is silly. Yes, it's a great tactic from the campaign to show that he cares, but he and Obama are meeting with President Bush right now to discuss the plans. How much more can McCain do tomorrow for three hours? The American people want to know what is going on, and they want to know the presidential candidates' issues. Many believe that McCain is just stalling and doesn't want to face Obama. Many also believe that McCain just wants to look good by saying he cares so much about the economy that he's willing to pause his campaign. However, both candidates can quickly fly to Mississippi and back to Washington, so the debate won't take too much time from their work. Also, if they're working all hours of the day, they can afford a break. If McCain doesn't show up to the debate, some people will think he cares a lot about the economy, and others will continue to question his motives. And if he does attend the debate, he'll just continue his reputation as a flip-flopper, like in the posted video.

Side note: I don't know how much I believe McCain about his going to Washington if he bailed on David Letterman yesterday and said that he had to go to Washington to work on the financial crisis when indeed, he was getting interviewed by Katie Couric at the time he was scheduled to be on David Letterman.