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Joint Center President Ralph B. Everett Reflects on the Inauguration of President Barack Obama

WASHINGTON, Jan. 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a statement by Joint Center President Ralph B. Everett on the Inauguration of President Barack Obama:

Today we begin a new chapter in the story of America and in the promise it holds for all people.

Two hundred and thirty-three years after our country was founded on bedrock principles of human equality, an African American now occupies the highest elected office in the land. Behind that simple fact are many tales about the arc of our history and the people who have helped bend it toward this moment.

President Barack Obama has already begun to set a new direction to address the enormous burdens that have been placed on his shoulders. But for the rest of us, especially those who never thought they would live to see this day, it is a time to pause and reflect on the wonders of our democracy and the enduring power of the dream that has been carried through the ages from the founding fathers to Dr. King and into the present day. It is a time to teach our children about the new possibilities that are now theirs to behold.

And while the vision of a more perfect union now seems closer to our grasp, our new President has noted that there is a long road ahead of us. At the same time, he has spoken eloquently about a new spirit of service and responsibility in which each American is called upon to look after not only ourselves, but each other. We wholeheartedly endorse that message and pledge to carry it forward in every aspect of our work.

The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies is one of the nation's leading research and public policy institutions and the only one whose work focuses primarily on issues of particular concern to African Americans and other people of color.

SOURCE Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies