When Barack Obama won the Democratic primaries, one cable news anchor candidly said, "I wish I could be teaching U.S. History at an inner city school tomorrow morning."
As a 10th grade U.S. History teacher in Harlem, I naively thought that the outcomes of the presidential election would turn my students into history nerds-eager and thirsty for knowledge about the foundations of our nation.
To their credit, my students are certainly fired up-and they continue to proudly wear their "Barack to the Future" pins to prove it. But they're not exactly ready to go anywhere just yet.
In the weeks leading up to Election Day, New Yorkers donned their jackets and backpacks with their rather radical political pins displaying their obvious candidate of choice. The Obama brand spread to every street corner of the city and could be purchased for less than the cost of lunch. The slightest mentioning of his name could draw the full attention of a dozen of the most disengaged inner-city teens.
As I watched the election results over beer and Chinese take-out on the floor of my apartment with a fellow former Public Policy major, I couldn't help but simultaneously wonder what the crowds were like at the election party in Sanford and on 125th Street in Harlem.
Having been a member of both groups, I was convinced that life as we knew it would change with the tallying of the final electoral votes. My students would come into school the next day, intoxicated with curiosity and a drive to become engaged young citizens.
But Election Day has come and gone. And unfortunately, not much has changed at all. On Nov. 5, my students didn't care any more about the importance of checks and balances in American democracy than they had on Nov. 3.
This past week has made me realize just how much work there needs to be done in order to inch toward the progress we've pledged to make-because by virtue of being president-elect, Obama cannot strip my students of their gang associations. By virtue of being president-elect, Obama cannot rewind the past six months and prevent one of my 15-year old students from getting pregnant. By virtue of being president-elect, Obama cannot shred the failed exams, subpoenas and eviction notices that cloud my students' path toward academic success everyday.
The most significant-and perhaps only-way Obama can touch the lives of the young people that I teach is to broaden their horizon of possibility. His mere existence should serve as a reminder to America that everything worthwhile in life takes a clear vision of success and a tremendous amount of hard work-rather than simply reaching the tipping point of celebrity status.
Hope, change and eventual progress are not inevitable because Obama is our next president. They can only become a reality if all Americans hold themselves and each other accountable for creating the systemic change for a better future.
Obama won the presidency as a result of the relentless pursuit of ordinary people working for a common cause. The election was no miracle. Nor will its result create miracles. Obama's victory is just the first step down a long road to the progress we hope for in the future.
And so I asked my students: What change do you want to see in your life? And the lives of those you love most? What's one thing you can do today to get you one step closer to this desired outcome?
As I write this column, in Room 231 on 129th and Amsterdam Ave. of a school that has been historically plagued by violence and broken dreams, I cannot silence the words of "I Believe I Can Fly" coming from the chorus room down the hall.
After the election, people made posters that read, "Rosa sat so that Martin could walk. Martin walked so that Barack could run. Barack ran so that our children could fly." Despite all our valiant efforts, I have no idea what will ultimately make my students fly beyond the boundaries set by national statistics of at-risk youths.
Obama's promise of change should not be taken for granted. It is in no way inevitable. And it's going to take a lot more than just one man to shape a generation.
Mingyang Liu, Trinity '08, is a first-year teacher with Teach for America in Harlem. She is a former senior editor of The Chronicle.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.