Fresh from our New Year’s shenanigans, we’ve sobered up to the reality that 2009 is upon us, and with it, a brand new quarter. It’s time again for new resolutions, new study habits, and new perspectives. But while 2009 may have arrived, the new year’s mentality hasn’t really come with it. There’s something missing.
For our country, and for 53 percent of us collectively, our New Year’s celebration begins on Jan. 20, the day President-elect Barack Obama will take his oath, deliver his inaugural address and enumerate his New Year’s resolutions for the nation.
So, in the spirit of these resolutions-to-come, and in celebration of this new beginning for our country, I think we should have a mini-holiday here at school.
I propose that professors across campus cancel their classes during the hours of President-elect Obama’s inaugural address and give their students a chance to witness history as it’s happening.
This would not just be a chance for students to skip out on class; instead, it is an opportunity to see the culmination of a campaign that changed the face of politics by acknowledging that we, the youth, and our ideas, really matter. For many of us who went out and voted for the first time this election, Obama felt like our candidate. Young people related to him more than any other candidate in history, and so it seems only fair that we should see our candidate take office.
Obama’s address will likely be a call to action, and I think we should be witnesses to that call as it is issued. We can take a moment and make a new resolution, along with our pledges to drop a couple pounds or improve our grades, and pledge to answer the call that Obama will surely deliver.
Inaugural addresses have appealed to the American people for years. When John F. Kennedy proclaimed, “Ask not what your country can do for you ““ ask what you can do for your country,” or when Franklin D. Roosevelt stated that “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself,” they created defining moments of their presidencies and mobilized the nation.
While Obama’s speech may be similar to calls of the past, his will be a call entirely unique to this generation.
We can’t know exactly what Obama’s address will contain, nor can we predict its effect on the nation, but given the speeches of his campaign, we can only assume that his address will be just as potent, just as memorable, and just as defining as Kennedy’s or Roosevelt’s were decades ago.
His speech will last only a moment in the grand scheme of his presidency, but the reverberations of that speech could be felt for years to come. I want to be able to say that I lived that moment, that I saw history as it happened and not as a replay on the Internet.
So perhaps our professors will allow us to watch the address live. I understand our 10-week quarter is cramped and that many professors feel pressured to squeeze in the material they feel is necessary to teach their courses, but there are some things that must take precedence over a few hours of class, and I believe this inaugural address is just such an important event.
By canceling class during the address, professors can ensure that their students have the opportunity to watch the address in its entirety. In the process, some professors can glean material for future classes, interested instructors will be able to watch the address and students can gain perspective on the plans of the upcoming administration, plans that will undoubtedly affect all of us as we enter the workforce.
So let your professors know that this inauguration is something that is important for all of us to see. Send them an e-mail and tell them why this speech is relevant to you, why being part of history by watching the address is a worthwhile use of a few early hours from 8:30 until 10 in the morning.
Perhaps then our professors will see that there is value in devoting time to watching Obama’s first speech as president. They will realize that when we watch collectively we are coming together to say that we will take this presidency seriously. We are ready to tune into his speech, but we are also willing to answer the call to action that Barack Obama will almost surely issue to all Americans.
This inauguration will be a uniting moment for the country, but by canceling classes during the address and ensuring that every student can watch the event unfold, we can make it a uniting moment for the campus as well.
Feel like it’s worth missing class to catch the inauguration? E-mail Fitzpatrick at cfitzpatrick@media.ucla.edu. Send general comments to viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.