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Obama makes history as first black president
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-01-21 15:37

The drama exceeded even the breathless buildup of recent days' nearly nonstop discussion on TV, blogs, podcasts and text messages. Not only heavily policed and barricaded Washington but much of the country virtually halted in its tracks -- even, albeit briefly, inside the casinos of Las Vegas.

President Barack Obama, the newly sworn in 44th President of the United States, and his wife Michelle wave as they walk down Pennsylvania Avenue during the inaugural parade in Washington January 20, 2009. [Agencies]

The nation has celebrated 55 inaugurations, but none like the one that made a president out of the son of Kenya and Kansas, a man who rose to America's highest office largely untested at executive leadership, his political experience encompassing only four years in the US Senate and eight in the state legislature of his home state of Illinois.

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Blacks especially powered the jubilation that was thick in the chilly air. Even though Obama didn't give the topic of race, his or others, much treatment in either his campaign nor his inaugural, blacks poured into Washington from all over to watch firsthand as one of their own at last shattered a painful racial barrier.

"It almost leaves me speechless," said 69-year-old Tony Avelino, who traveled from Brea, Calif. "This situation is so emotional it's basically an unreal experience," added 56-year-old Cleveland Wesley, on the Mall from Houston with his wife as the sun rose.

Many others also see in Obama fresh reason for optimism at a time of great national insecurity. Or a chance for rest from the eight acrimonious years of the Bush presidency. Or even a turn toward modernity, as a country hurtling into new ways of communicating, connecting and conducting business chose a man more comfortable in that world than any leader before him.

Excitement over Obama's young, camera-ready family and the thought of Malia Obama and her sister, 7-year-old Sasha, turning the stately White House into a children's playroom also figured prominently in the day.

Among the feverishly discussed questions: What would fashion-forward Michelle Obama be wearing when the first couple arrived at their first evening ball to dance to pop singer Beyonce crooning the old blues classic "At Last"? The shimmering gold brocade sheath dress and matching coat that she chose for the daytime sparked immediate watercooler discussion, especially when she paired the outfit with green gloves against the cold.

In a country nearly evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans, it was notable that protests were nearly unseen, a remarkable shift from the two Bush inaugurations that were marked by boisterous demonstrations. One group of about 20 people from a Baptist church in Kansas demonstrated with anti-gay slogans.

With his White House campaign and landslide November victory built in part on his rhetorical gifts, Obama sought to provide reassurance for the future while compelling listeners to sacrifice.

He articulated eloquently the deeper effect on the American psyche of the problems of war and recession: "a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights."

Not so, said Obama. But he cautioned that the effort will require all citizens, no matter party, age, skin color, or status, to get to work.