Yes We Did!!

Where were you when Obama won the Presidency?

I was in Columbus, OH with 22 other gay/straight, Jewish/Christian/Muslim, filmmakers/writers/artists who worked their butts off to see this happen. I would have not been anywhere else. My God I was part of something amazing.

Waking up on this morning was just the most butterfly feeling. I got up at 4:45am to work 15 hours at a polling place as a poll monitor. Our job was to make it easier for people to vote and to make certain there were no issues with them being able to exercise their right to vote.

Our assigned polling location: World Harvest Church!!!! Oh. My. God. Indeed. This is a right wing evangelical church that uses its power politically against gays, pro choice, liberal politicians, etc. Separation of church and state my ass. This compound was massive and just creeped me out beyond belief. Theirs and mine.

I have to say the congregation was white AND black. And I also have to say for the most part they were all really lovely. To my face. As poll monitors we were to stand 100 feet away from the front door and be totally non-partisan meaning no Obama stickers, no Obama talk, etc. We were simply there to make sure everyone got to vote.

Again, we were in a key state and smartly the Obama team was leaving nothing to chance. Lawyers who donated their time were there as well as us. This was going to be clean if we had anything to do with it.

Funny how two Canadian American Jews and a NYC post-Catholic gay man were pegged immediately by many as "Obama" people. Some tried to tell us we were not allowed on the property. Another man said to me "Whose vote are you cancelling out?" I told him I was just there to make certain he was able to exercise his right to vote. Lawyers were inside and outside. "Houdinis" as they are called came by to check the voting records to make sure they added up. Nothing was left to chance by us. It was amazing.

We were at World Harvest from sun up to sun set. This is sun up.

Sarah and Pat, Poll Monitors that couldn't seem to blend in.

This is just the part where the school is. Not even the church part. The whole place is massive. They have a store inside. God appearing at top right. The 100 feet mark. Sarah taking a break and breaking the law.

Our legal eagle, Anita. Fantastic woman.

Other Sarah, vixen for God. A little disrespectful, but this whole wall was all about Rod Parsons, not the church. Egotistical bastard for Jesus. It is a time line of HIS life (ie. born in 1957, born again in 1965, made sure gays could never marry in Ohio 2004. ) It is all on his asshole wall. I think personally he is nothing about God. Maybe I am an asshole.

The team at World Harvest.


We stayed at World Harvest late. It was here that we heard many of the states being called for Obama. The excitement was palpable. We were no longer anonymous in our clear selection of candidate, but the polls were closed so it was okay.

We headed back to Real World Columbus. It was here where we all gathered and heard that Ohio went for Obama. OHIO went for OBAMA!!! That swelling feeling that you were part of something big was overwhelming. I really felt that surge (overused word these days) in me. We were all part of something big.

Then we heard that the United States of America went for Obama and we knew we were part of something HUGE.

I will never forget being in this room with all these people who were strangers to me a few days ago and feeling this collective feeling of pride, elation and team effort. Ding dong the witch is dead. The village that is takes was thawing after being flash frozen for 8 years by the evil wizard and his overlord. The prince had kissed the sleeping princess and there is a new day ahead.

Or so I believe.