By Molly Freedenberg
Some moments we don’t recognize as historic until they’ve passed. Others are so monumental, we feel their future importance even as we experience them in the present. The bombing of Pearl Harbor, Kennedy’s assassination, and 9/11 all were such moments – those old enough to be cognizant all remember where they were the first moment they heard the news.
Our newest such moment is, of course, election night 2008.
And so we’d like to ask, as your history books and children and relatives surely will ask you for years to come: Where were you when you heard the news of Obama’s election? How did you feel? And how did you celebrate? Leave your answer in the comments below. Also, if you have photos or video of election night, we’d like to see them! Please send links or files with subject line “Obama 4th” to art.guardian@gmail.com.
I’ll kick things off:
When I first heard the news, I was at Inner Mission Tavern, watching CNN with a room packed full of strangers. As they hugged and cheered and drank, I stood still and cried. I stayed to watch the speeches, struck by several things …