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Next entry: Pragamatic politics for atheists Previous entry: The Promise Of Tomorrow

Rest In Peace, Madelyn Dunham

Democrats

Barack Obama’s grandmother has died

My grandmother is of her generation, born in 1925 rather than 1922.  Periodically, she’s asked me if I really thought a black man could become president.  She grew up through the Depression, through the vestiges of Jim Crow, through separate but equal, through Martin and Malcolm.  The profoundly sad thing about Mrs. Dunham’s death is that she won’t be able to see her grandson do something that was impossible even 40 years ago, but we can draw inspiration that men and women of her generation, raised in a world where a man of Barack Obama’s skin color was barely a person, will see the world change tomorrow. 

Thank you, Madelyn Dunham, for helping raise a fine man in Barack Obama.  We all hope to do you proud tomorrow.

 

 

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Posted by Jesse Taylor on 08:44 PM • (19) Comments

As lots of others have said on other sites, it’s a really tragic story, and I send my condolences out to the family along with everyone else. Everyone but the assholes who think this was planned.

Comment #1: Incertus, Nacho Daddy  on  11/03  at  08:56 PM

One day.

One more day and she would have seen history in the making.

It’s not fair.

And the lowest elements of society are exploiting it.

Sometimes I wonder why I even bother.

Comment #2: Damian  on  11/03  at  09:08 PM

Nicely written.  My grandmother is the same age as Ms. Dunham, and luckily we still have more time with her (whom we also call Tutu because my cousins are Hawaiian).  I only wish his grandmother had had a few more days to see her grandson elected to our highest office…but she’ll be watching from wherever she is now.

Comment #3: Amber  on  11/03  at  09:08 PM

Sometimes I wonder why I even bother.

Because if we didn’t, they’d win by default, and we can’t have that.

Comment #4: Incertus, Nacho Daddy  on  11/03  at  09:14 PM

Oh I’m not giving up - I just wonder why I think changing people’s minds will do anything.  People keep showing themselves to be hateful, spineless, selfish, destructive, and harmful.  Why am I helping when all it does is make me angry and doesn’t keep them from doing and saying such horrible things?

Comment #5: Damian  on  11/03  at  09:20 PM

My condolences go out to Barack for the loss of she who raised him.  It’s a real personal loss and will no doubt reduce his physical ability to campaign.  When my mother died I wasn’t right for a while.

However, if this were a bad movie…  It’s my problem that I yearn to be a screenwriter,  I confess that.

Hey, Will Smith could play Obama, maybe in a movie even more paranoid than “Enemy of the State”.

Comment #6: Fred 2.0  on  11/03  at  09:25 PM

The profoundly sad thing about Mrs. Dunham’s death is that she won’t be able to see her grandson do something that was impossible even 40 years ago.

To be honest, Jesse, I never thought this could be possible even 10 years ago.  Maybe even 4 or 5 years ago when I saw a magazine spread about this magnetic, unstoppable young Senator from Chicago who had his eye on the White House and the biggest MLK Dream of them all.

Between the “history” factor and the clowns-in-suits fatigue I’ve been feeling re. your country since Bush ‘00, I can’t help being swept along even as a foreigner.  Never happened before (though I actually felt sick to my stomach when Bush won in both elections—about as sick over our own current PM).  To show our support, friends and I are gathering at a downtown pub tomorrow night to watch the returns and colour in US maps with red and blue crayons.  Two of those friends are one part USian (absentee voters), one part Canadian, and the rest of us furriners will be there to support them come what may.

I want to see street parties in Toronto, London and Paris tomorrow night.  I don’t normally like to enable American Exceptionalism, but the girl can’t help it this time. This time’s special. 

Good luck tomorrow, everyone.

Comment #7: Ranylt  on  11/03  at  09:37 PM

This is heartbreaking news. Her passing brings to mind all the good people who didn’t make it to celebrate the end of the Bush era with us.

Comment #8: Lindsay Beyerstein  on  11/03  at  09:45 PM

It’s very sad and Obama is probably torn right now. Of course all Lou Dobbs can do is bash Obama’s aunt for an hour instead of paying a little respect.

Comment #9: Frank  on  11/03  at  10:04 PM

You can’t make this stuff up.

Let’s hope she’s planning to canvass her wings off!

Comment #10: Ms Kate  on  11/03  at  10:21 PM

(In what I suppose is typical, narcissistic Millennial fashion…) somehow this news has gotten all bound up with my own loss, also of a parent-type who gave me my political eyes and ears, who taught me to raise hell against the Right, and who wanted so, so much to see Obama win tomorrow night.

There’s nothing in the face of such loss except to ache for him. I can’t even be angry at those who would exploit it…I only ache for their emptiness and heartlessness. And even if the speeches tomorrow are the kind we are all hoping for, I know at least some of my tears won’t be happy ones.

Comment #11: Well, what?  on  11/03  at  10:28 PM

R.I.P.

Comment #12: Ben D.  on  11/03  at  10:29 PM

Good luck tomorrow, everyone.

Thank you… now here’s hoping we don’t need it…

[insert standard “Dear America, please try not to fuck shit up.  Thanks, Laura” letter here.]

Comment #13: LauraB  on  11/03  at  10:29 PM

Ranylt, if you’re in Toronto, I’ll meet you in the streets tomorrow night!... with all my friends.

I can’t imagine what Obama must be going through right now.  I hope Madelyn died with hope and peace in her heart.

The SadlyNauts have, I think, the definitive exposé on Freeper Madness:  http://www.sadlyno.com/archives/13833.html .

Comment #14: yesbut  on  11/03  at  10:34 PM

Well, What? and Lindsay have already said what I wanted to say.

Here’s to all the great people who didn’t get to see the end of the Bush Regime. 

I’ll be drinking to a few tomorrow night, and thinking of them in the ballot box.

Comment #15: The Opoponax  on  11/03  at  10:40 PM

As someone who was raised by her grandmother, and she’s also gone, my heart goes out to Barack Obama and his family.

If only she’d lived one more day…but maybe she knew in her heart that her grandson was going to achieve the impossible, and decided that was good enough for her.

Rest in peace, Madelyn.

Comment #16: agfmama  on  11/04  at  01:37 AM

ONE year ago, I thought that a black man with a Muslim-sounding name was an unlikely possible nominee, and could possibly make president.

but the more I saw and heard of the guy, the more possible it seemed. And when he gave his convention speech, I heard him putting Democratic thought into conservative words, and I *got* that he was a new kind of bipartisan, ready to do what I’d groused privately about for some time (getting middle class economic conservatives to see that progressives actually were proposing pragmatic ways to achieve the goals that everyone wanted).

I’m sad for him, losing someone who’d been so much in his life, especially at a pivotal time.

Comment #17: Samantha Vimes  on  11/04  at  03:59 AM

That was beautiful, Jesse.  I read it at work earlier and teared up.  I’m going to be a wretched mess when Obama wins this.  I’ll be disappointed beyond the telling if he loses, but the win is going to emotionally wreck me the same way I (who am not a crier, usually) get really weepy at Civil Unions (but not weddings).  The political finally making strides towards social justice is the most moving thing.

And R.I.P. to Obama’s grandmother, who I’m very sad will not get to witness this.

Comment #18: Hekie  on  11/04  at  04:28 AM

I knew my grandmother when I was very young. She read to me, taught me to read by age three, and was devoted to me and my sisters.  I understand the influence of a Granny’s love.
I mourn in empathy for Barak Obama, and wish him well in his presidential bid. He’s got another angel watching over him now.

Comment #19: Stevie Lee  on  11/04  at  12:14 PM
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