Nov 6, 2008 12:11 am US/Eastern
Obama Fulfills Civil Rights Dream In South Florida
Obama Will Be The 44th President, The First African-American 232 Years After The Establishment Of The Republic
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
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President-elect Barack Obama and family stand on stage during his election night victory rally at Grant Park on Nov. 4, 2008, in Chicago, Ill.
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President-elect Obama's successful campaign represents a high point of a five-decade climb for African-Americans since the civil rights movement started dismantling segregation and suppression of minority voting.
In Miami-Dade, the crowds began to form on Northwest 62nd Street in Liberty City, in a neighborhood scarred by race riots, on a stretch of road named for Martin Luther King Jr. The police estimated about two thousand people celebrated.
In Broward and Palm Beach counties, Tuesday's election was about much more than the war or the economy.
On Sistrunk Boulevard, blocks from the African-American Library and Research Center, in Fort Lauderdale, celebrations erupted in the streets.
Cars cruised up and down the boulevard. Crowds stood on both sides of the street and in both traffic lanes. People held up Obama signs and shouted "Obama. Obama."
Marvin Dunn, a retired South Florida psychology professor, historian and author told CBS4 Reporter Gwen Belton, "Obama will go to Liberty City. He'll go to Overtown. He'll touch those cities." He went on to explain that hopefully much of the racial divide in Miami will now be left behind.
Nationally, according to Associated Press exit polls, Obama drew the votes of more than half of women, two-thirds of Hispanic voters and nearly all blacks who went to the polls.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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