This was the second election night I've gotten to watch from the eyes of the Middle East.
Four years ago, tears were shed, all-night parties were held, horns were honking in the streets, and random people were approaching us in the streets yelling "MABROUK OBAMA" (Congratulations). The tone of this week's elections was considerably more subdued, though still overwhelmingly in favor of Obama. There were no tears of joy shed and nobody danced. People here have lost their sense of hope that Obama will make a chance in US policy toward Israel or Palestine, but there were offers of "mabrouk" within the center where I work, even accompanied in some cases with leftover Eid cookies. Four years ago, people around the world were full of hope. This year, we're all just looking for some stability and a little forward momentum.
Elections provided the opportunity to think back to election night in Tunisia four years ago, and look at how much my world has changed. Four years ago, I barely spoke a word of Arabic. I was in college with little idea of the career I wanted. Four years ago I was living under a dictatorship that fell in early 2011 to popular protests that swept across the region I have come to love. Four years ago, the only leaders the US had ever known had been overwhelmingly a group with whom I don't identify-- rich white men. Four years ago, I walked into my host family's house after an all-night party at the embassy watching the election results come in to be greeted with a giant hug from my host brother who said over and over "I never thought America would do it. I never thought they'd elect a black man", to which I couldn't help but agree, "I wasn't so sure we could either".
Today, white Americans are no longer the majority. The face of America is changing, and it's coming to look a lot more like the one I identify with and recognize as my America. It is overwhelmingly a little younger, a little darker in skin tone, a little bit more gay-friendly. This year, we elected our first Hindu senator in the state of Hawaii. The first gay senator in Wisconsin. This year we have the highest number of women elected to senate ever. And we still have a black (or at least non-white) president, and the first president to openly endorse gay marriage. Americans took to polls to legalize gay marriage in Maine and Maryland, and Minnesota became the first state to shoot down a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. We may even get a 51st state. Four years ago, I was hopeful about the direction my country was headed in, and I was met mostly with high unemployment rates and frustration.
Today, I'm still frustrated with my country and our policies on many issues, and experiencing this election year in Palestine has only thrown those frustrations into even sharper relief. But today I'm also proud of my country, because I think for the first time since I've been eligible to vote, I can say with certainty that despite everything, I am confident that my country is going in the right direction, even if much more slowly than I would like. Now if only we could get Michele Bachmann out of office...
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