Obama in South Africa in Interesting Times

Several people have asked me what it was like to be in Africa when Obama was elected. In Kenya, they declared a national holiday. Personally, I was excited and elated – I woke at 4am, checked the TV, heard "OBAMA OBAMA", and went back to bed feeling immensely relieved. To have a black man as the president of the United States! But his colour is only a very small part of it. It was incredible to see the long snaking lines of people queuing to vote (reminiscent of South Africa in 1994) and the worldwide emotion that followed his election. People still have hope for change.

Surprisingly, there seemed to be little reaction in South Africa. I was disappointed to find nobody to share my excitement with! My best guess is that South Africans are too caught up in their own complicated politics, which have been especially controversial lately with the resignation of President Thabo Mbeki and the deep divisions in the African National Congress (ANC). It is a common topic of conversation and headlines. I don't really know what to think about the split in the ANC. On the one hand, the ANC has enjoyed an overwhelming majority for so long and I think it must be good for democracy for people to have an alternative. On the other hand, the ANC has been the party of the people, which needed and harnessed that popular support to lead the country out of apartheid, and Mandela and Tutu have been quoted in the media as being unsupportive of the party split. When South African politics are so damn interesting, it’s no wonder that American politics remain on the periphery.