Hi, I'm Dawn Whitaker

This presidential election is guaranteed to make history no matter who is elected.  Americans will either choose the first African American president, or the first female vice-president.  Still, neither Senator Obama nor Governor Palin are the first to tap on that glass ceiling; don't forget Shirley Chisholm-she was the first major party African-American candidate running for President of the United States , earning 152 first-ballot votes at the '72 DNC!  Jesse Jackson ran in 1984 and Al Sharpton tried in 2004.  How about Geraldine Ferraro, who was Walter Mondale's running mate in 1984? 

The dramatic failure of these early attempts sent a clear message, "America was not ready for a woman or an African American in the White House."  So what about the past 20 years has made America so ready for change?  Maybe Hollywood can take at least a little credit for changing public perception. 20 years ago, Hollywood's images of blacks were mostly limited to pimps and gangsters in movies like "Colors" or at their best, the noble yet ignorant Celie in the Color Purple.  Women were mothers, wives and secretaries, but never a president!  But over the past two decades, we've seen Morgan Freeman and Dennis Haysbert play exceptional African American presidents in the movie Deep Impact and the Fox TV's 24, and Gina Davis played Mackenzie Allen, a strong Republican woman president on ABC's "Commander in Chief."

We won't know, until November 4^th, who Americans will choose to support, but let's hope that our choice, whoever it is, will be elected because we believe in their plans to end the war in Iraq, stop bleeding in our economy at home and reduce our dependence on foreign oil, not because of the color of race or gender.

Check the Show-notes for more information on the early pioneers of diversity in politics and links to get your own copy of some of the greatest movies featuring women and African Americans in powerful roles.

Here's my Tech Tip for today:
Major cities across the nation are passing laws prohibiting the use of mobile phones without a hands-free device of some type.  In other words, don't get caught holding your phone to your ear-it's a ticket you can easily avoid!  Check the Show-notes for my list of Bluetooth headsets and hands-free kits for your car, and some price conscious wired options too.