Thursday, November 13, 2008

Election Night Festivities Unite New Yorkers

(previously published here at www.nycitynewsservice.com)

In the evening hours before results of the 2008 Presidential Election were announced, people around the country gathered outside to wait for news and celebrate whatever outcome resulted. In New York, the main gatherings were in Harlem and Times Square, each area filling up with hundreds and even thousands of revelers.

In Manhattan’s Times Square, a festive atmosphere reigned as poll results trickled in on the outdoor jumbo screens. And amidst the neon lights, crowds erupted into cheers, whoops, car honks and all-around exuberance when Barack Obama was announced as the President-Elect of the United States of America.

In a city where strangers can go entire rides on the subway without acknowledging one another, people of all ages, backgrounds and histories blended together in a jubilant mass, posing for photos with each other and hugging and smiling at one another. The atmosphere was akin to a New Year’s party, but with a uniting theme: hope, change and a new future.

Click on the image above for a slideshow of the night's festivities.

No comments: