They say one can always remember where they were and what they were doing when historical events happen; especially the tragic ones. I remember exactly those things and more about September 11, 2001. I’m sure I will remember the same about May 1, 2011: The day that Osama Bin Laden was murdered at the hands of American military forces. As unexpected as the news was, my reaction to the news also was surprising. I didn’t immediately feel a sense of relief or excitement. I wasn’t ready for celebration. I just felt odd. I felt the same way when they tracked down Saddam Hussein in that hole, living as a rodent when he had once lived like a king. It just felt weird to celebrate something like that. I understand the sacrifice of American lives at the cost of terrorism and definitely share compassion and sympathy, however we are victims of domestic terrorism daily that people don’t even bat an eye at, let alone spend billions of dollars attempting to stop.
I applaud the leadership of our President and the courage of our troops, but its hard to get excited about one man being killed, when daily people in my community continue to be victims of the imbalanced social structure that has been created and perpetuated by the same system that intently set their sights on Osama and Saddam. We are still under-educated, hungry, homeless, battling foreclosure, sickness, abuse, joblessness, racism, sexism, and misogyny (among other social ills), and I cannot exhale a breath of freedom knowing that these things are still in existence.
I guess the surprise in my emotional response was that as ideal as I would like to be sometimes, is as idealistic as I am not. I often straddle the line of being too cynical and hopeful. I am definitely encouraged for the change the future can bring, but bracing myself for the impact of that change.