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The votes are in, and Barack Obama has been named President-elect of the United States.

As the first African-American elected to the presidency, in the midst of wars abroad in Iraq and Afghanistan and a global economic crisis, this is no doubt an historic event for our country--and the world.

You know how you reacted; now find out how others around the globe are responding to the news.

 

Image: Barack Obama tours his ancestral homeland in Kenya, with his grandmother, Sarah Obama, in August 2006.

1. The Huffington Post features excerpts from stories in England, Israel, Australia, and Kenya. Obama's father, also Barak Hussein Obama, hailed from Nyangoma-Kogelo, Kenya. Did you know that there is a high school and a beer named after this town’s favorite son-of-son? The honors were bestowed on Barak Jr. even before he ran for president!

Another featured excerpt from The Australian highlights the significance of Obama’s victory for the international community:

“The American people chose Obama yet most of the world also wanted Obama - that invests his Presidency with a potential authority unknown in history and an opportunity to touch not just Americans but people around the world.”

2. CNN News includes an even wider selection, geographically speaking, of media coverage from journalists in Asia, Russia, and throughout the Arab world.

3.Finally, you can always count on the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) to provide balanced perspective on all sides of an issue. See how readers from all corners of the globe responded to the question “How will an Obama presidency affect your life?”

While comments were overwhelmingly positive, some expressed concern about Obama’s intended policy directions. A couple of examples:

Farah Hanna of East Jerusalem criticized Obama’s support of the “Israeli Lobby.”

“As a Palestinian, the election of Obama will not bring any change for me.

Obama has not uttered a word about the starved Palestinians in Gaza. In contrast, he has praised Israel.

He has not mentioned ending the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories including East Jerusalem. Instead he has even commented that Jerusalem will be the "undivided capital" of Israel.

Shame on the president who, instead of supporting liberation movements and human rights, flatters the Israeli lobby.

And José Alsonso of Miami, Florida, worried about Obama’s stance on trade issues:

“I do not foresee a positive government of Obama, especially in the relationship with Latin America, because of his opposition towards the NAFTA and the classical protectionist policies of his party.

Anyway, within four years we will have an opportunity to correct the course and U.S. will remain the only nation with one fourth of the millennium without dictators and coups d'etat.”

You can locate individual comments on the BBC’s interactive map; I think you’ll find it interesting to compare American sentiments with those of readers in the international community. Then, weigh in on the BBC’s question and send your comments our way!

 

Sarah for My Wonderful World
Image courtesy Simon Maina/AFP/Getty Images

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