Dear Editor,

President Barack Obama has inspired millions, not just in the USA, but the world over. He symbolises possibility, hope and change. President Obama and his family serve as the face of what family means, specifically, what black family means. The Obamas present an alternative to the reality of many and an inspiration for what can be.

Many here in Jamaica watched with bated breath and crossed fingers as Americans voted for their first black president. His words during his 2009 inauguration inspired the world as he articulated a vision of a new America, one where everyone would have the same opportunities; of a world where America would co-exist with the other nations on the planet through diplomacy and a focus on mutual benefit rather than seeking to police and wield a big stick. He quoted George Washington: “Let it be told to the future world that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive, that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet it.” This was a timely and relevant message to me personally at a very low point in my own life. It kept hope alive in my heart.

Jamaica welcomed Obama with open arms. I am so happy that we were able to clean house and put our best foot forward to welcome this historic, inspirational figure. I hope that he will remember his visit to Jamaica long after he leaves the White House.

It is our own Government that I take issue with. Daily we plead with our Government for good roads, for garbage collection, for street lights to be repaired, for even an appearance of order. Literally overnight, they have transformed areas of our city Kingston into oases of clean and orderly beauty. What we have been clamouring for is apparently not an impossibility. This is a slap in the face of us taxpayers who are forced to exist and live in squalor. To be very clear, it’s the absolute absence of any semblance of reasonable governance ordinarily that makes the preparation for the visit so offensive.

Let us take pictures of Kingston’s facelift as evidence of what can be done, literally overnight, if Government simply makes a decision.

Kelly McIntosh

kkmac218@gmail.com