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Sen. Obama Rallies N.J. Black Women and College Students
By Daryl Hannah
January 10, 2008
Nothing could keep 47-year-old single mother Esther Sass from seeing Sen. Barack Obama, even if it meant driving for two hours and waiting in line for another two hours. Despite strong winds in Jersey City yesterday, Sass, who has been a registered Republican for 15 years, was completely open to Obama's message of hope.
"Sen. Obama is the hope of America and I came to hear his message of hope," said Sass.
Like Sass, more than 3,000 people, mostly Black women and college students, packed St. Peter's College's Yanitalli Gymnasium; another 2,000 people waited outside.
Click here to watch a video from the Obama's speech by the Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J..
Unshaken by the defeat in New Hampshire the night before, supporters--both old and young--filled the room, holding signs that read "Yes We Can" and "It's Obama Time," while others chanted "O-bam-a, O-bam-a, O-bam-a." Together they all held on to the spirit of hope they say Obama has instilled in them since the beginning of his campaign.
"Sen. Obama has the sincerity and honesty you don't see in the other candidates," said Sass. "He's been that way from the beginning and that gives me hope for America."
Applause and cheers greeted Obama as he took the stage. Some parents held up their babies to catch a glimpse of the Illinois senator. "My voice is a little hoarse, my eyes are a little bleary, my back is a little sore, but my spirit is strong and the time for change is now," said Obama with a Black minister's tone, standing behind a podium with the word "change" plastered to the front.
"There's something in the wind all across America," Obama told the crowd. "You first saw it in Iowa last Thursday and you saw it yesterday in New Hampshire, even though we just came up a little bit short."
He then outlined his plan for universal healthcare and his proposal to increase the number of jobs in America.
For Beatrice Calhoun, a single mother with a daughter in college, it was Obama's plan to make college more affordable--which includes a $4,000 tax credit offset by a community-service requirement--that rang the loudest.
"College is very expensive and although my daughter uses loans to pay for school, I am worried about the debt she will have when she graduates," says Calhoun.
The Garden State crowd needed no convincing on whether Obama was the right candidate for them; many left the rally reassured and re-energized. "Once you go Barack, you never go back," said Beth McGrain from Nutley, N.J., who waited in line for more than two hours to see the senator. Others talked about traveling to South Carolina to hear him speak again.
New Jersey is one of the 22 states hosting its primary on Feb. 5. With 127 delegates, it is the third most important result on that night after California with 441 and New York with 281.
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