Make no doubt about it America you are not alone in your excitement and yearning for positive change in domestic and world affairs. Millions of people all over Europe, Africa and the world are standing shoulder to shoulder with you today. I can bear witness to this claim as people here in Germany have been sharing their thoughts, ideas and feelings of goodwill toward America ever since Barack Obama won the November 2008 US presidential election. It is not only this young, dynamic African American politician that has inspired them, it is also the spirit of the American people that have helped to restore some confidence and hope in their hearts and minds.
Today, Inauguration Day, I can see genuine joy everywhere in my community as people are cognizant that this day is very, very special. We were greeted this morning with rays of warm sunshine washing over the old Hanseatic city of Bremen after weeks of bitter winter cold. People here know that this is a pivotal event not just in American history but in the history of the world. It is estimated that tens of millions of people in Germany will be watching the inauguration live tonight (1800 CET) and they will be joined by more than a billion people watching the historical event on televisions around the globe. I am so full of joy that it is more than this old heart can bear. Like Obama’s grandmother in Kenya, Sarah Anyango Obama, was quoted after his November election victory, “I don’t know if I will die of happiness!”
‘Let freedom ring. Hallelujah America! Let an unforgettable example of the triumph of a long struggle for freedom and democracy spread its warm rays over the world for all to see.’
Other views about the 2009 US Presidential Inauguration from Germany
Excerpt from an interview with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Spiegel Online International (Der Spiegel magazine) – January 12, 2009
An Open Letter to President-elect Barack Obama from Germany
Germany Offers Obama Deeper Partnership: 'The US and Europe Standing Shoulder to Shoulder' by Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Dear Barack Obama:
Last July, hundreds of thousands gathered before the Victory Column in Berlin to hear your vision of a better America and a more peaceful world. Your words moved millions of TV viewers. You rekindled the American dream for which countless people the world over have admired your country for more than 200 years, the dream of a society that has the power to change, that is open to new ideas, and that gives those with courage room to take their destiny into their own hands.
In a few days time you will take office as the 44th President of the United States of America. I am now 53 years of age, and never before to my recollection has there been such a feeling of hope and confidence about the inauguration of a US president -- not only here in Germany, but worldwide.
The expectations placed in you are almost beyond the human dimension, and the challenges you will face from day one are huge: a still-fragile financial system, an economy heading for recession, and an uncertain, changing world.
An impossible task? In any case one requiring courage, circumspection and stamina, and to be sure also new thinking that challenges old ideas and seeks new routes.
Your campaign was thrilling. You gave people, in the US and beyond, enthusiasm for a new start towards a shared future. You want to act in a spirit of partnership and to embark on a new course. This is why we see your incoming Administration above all as an opportunity, at this particular juncture, also for us here in Germany.
The tasks we are facing are enormous: to create a transparent and reliable global financial architecture; to combat the economic crisis; to revamp the global institutions; to create new trust between East and West; to build bridges between different cultures and religions that know little about one another; to bring peace and new prospects to places where today crisis holds sway; to take effective steps against climate change; to achieve global disarmament instead of the proliferation of ever more dangerous weapons.
All these aims can only be realized together. No country in the world, even the most powerful, can solve even one of these problems alone.
Together -- that means the US and Europe standing shoulder to shoulder. During the Cold War the West Germans benefited from America's commitment to freedom and democracy. Americans and Germans enthusiastically celebrated the fall of the Berlin Wall together. After that, however, our relations all too often became daily routine. At times in recent years I was concerned that our links might become looser. But we must not become indifferent to each other, especially at this crucial time, as in an increasingly uncertain world we need to enter a whole new dimension of cooperation. Together we can continue to shape the 21st century world -- if we make a courageous new start, place the central issues of humanity at the center of our attention, and seek joint answers to the questions posed by the future. Let us together set out a "New Trans-Atlantic Agenda" and bring it to life.
Read the complete letter at Spiegel Online International.
Hmmmm? This sudden outpouring of warmth and support from the German political elite for the new U.S. president is quite ironic. It was only seven months ago that leading German politicians were fighting one another tooth-and-nail over whether Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama could speak at the famous Brandenburg Gate or not. (The New York Times – July 10, 2008) I must admit though that Frankie (FM Frank-Walter Steinmeier) was in favor of the idea.
News and opinion about the 2009 US Presidental Inauguration from Germany
Spiegel Online International (English website of Germany’s Der Spiegel magazine)
SPIEGEL ONLINE US Elections 2008 Special Feature: America has made its choice
The World from Berlin: 'America's Renewal Is No Modest Undertaking'
An Open Letter to President-elect Barack Obama from Germany
Germany Offers Obama Deeper Partnership: 'The US and Europe Standing Shoulder to Shoulder' by German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier
SPIEGEL ONLINE Interview with Author Jonathan Alter: 'All Presidents Are Blind Dates'
SPIEGEL Interview with Strobe Talbott: 'The Obama Administration Will Be Very Cautious'
The World President: Great Expectations for Project Obama
Battered and Bruised: America Looks Beyond the Bush Warriors
Deutsche Welle Online (DW-World English language website)
Special coverage of the US Presidential Inauguration
America Readies for Change World News 20.01.2009
Germany's Obamania Soon to Face Reality Test Germany 18.01.2009
Experts: EU Lacks Unity in Responding to Obama's Demands Europe 14.01.2009
2DF – Germany’s 2nd National Television Network (German language only)
2DF Heute.de Nachrichten (2DF Today - News channel main website)
Machtwechsel im Weißen Haus (Transition of power in the White House)
Note: above links direct you to all live coverage and 2DF news reports on the US Presidential Inauguration and related stories. 2DF Mediathek is the online archive of all “DF video reports about the inauguration.
Atlantic Community – an open German think tank (English language)
Atlantic Memo: "Time to Start Transatlantic Relations Afresh" by Jessee Schwarz
Atlantic Review – a press digest for transatlantic affairs (English language)
Lessons for Europe's Social Democrats from the Obama Campaign by David Vickrey of Dialog International
Dialog International
Leon de Winter's Racist Attack on Barack Obama in Die Welt, 01/01/09
Note: Die Welt is a leading German daily newspaper
Earlier posts at Jewels in the Jungle re: Barack Obama and Germany
The Obama Election Victory as Viewed from Germany: 'Mr. President, Wir Sind Überglucklich!', 11/10/09
Barack Obama in Berlin: How we in Germany experienced the visit, 07/28/08
US and International news and opinion about the US Presidential Inauguration
CNN International
For Obama, Lincoln was model president - CNN.com
Special Report: The 44th President – The Inauguration
The New York Times
Op-Ed Contributors - A Pragmatic Precedent - NYTimes.com
Henry Louis Gates Jr. and John Stauffer
A Civil Rights Victory Party on the Mall - NYTimes.com
Obama's People - The New York Times Magazine
Voices From the Lincoln Memorial - The New York Times - Video Library
Inaugurations in Times of Peril - The New York Times - Video Library
The Inauguration of the 44th President – Special Feature - The New York Times
Inaugural Words - 1789 to the Present - Interactive Graphic - NYTimes.com
Newsweek
Voices of Obama's America: Who We Are Now Newsweek Politics: The Obama Presidency Newsweek.com
Many Obama Advisers Have Lived Abroad Newsweek Politics: The Obama Presidency Newsweek.com
The International Herald Tribune
Obama's aura, and our anticipation - International Herald Tribune
Crowds converge on Lincoln Memorial as inauguration ceremonies start - International Herald Tribune
TheRoot.com
The Inaugural Poet The Root
Pragmatism and the Presidency The Root
'Welcome to Washington' The Root
An Open Letter to Barack Obama The Root
In Our Lifetime The Root
Slate magazine
Stars and stripes forevers - Part 1 by Curtis Sittenfeld - Slate Magazine
A novella written especially for the presidential inauguration
Technorati tags:
America 
Obama 
Barack Obama 
politics 
election 2008 
history 
American History 
African American 
civil rights 
global voices
No comments:
Post a Comment