R. Bruce Thompson: Exciting First Day in Denver

Mon, August 25, 2008 - 1:25 AM

My flight from Raleigh to Denver this morning was full of North Carolina Democrats headed to the Convention. It was like "old home week" as we all filed into Terminal A at RDU. I was going on little sleep because I decided that I needed to stay up and watch fellow Wake Forest Demon Deacon Chris Paul lead the USA past Spain in the gold medal game. As the game didn't end until 5am, it was probably not a good idea for me to watch it. However, it just meant that I needed a few extra cups of coffee at the airport.

I was struck by the diversity of the North Carolina delegates who were making their way to Denver. A wide range of ages, backgrounds, geography, race and gender makes up our delegation. To borrow a line from Bill Clinton, we have a delegation that "looks like North Carolina." I was also pleased to see so many parents bring their children to witness what will certainly be an historic moment on Thursday night.

We landed in Denver around noon Mountain Time and shuttled to the North Carolina host hotel, the Doubletree Denver Tech Center. This area of town is pleasant will beautiful views of the mountains and easy access to Denver's excellent light rail system. However, it is a long trip downtown to where the action starting heating up today.

I made my way downtown and was walking down the 16th Street Mall on my way to a Civil Rights forum featuring Rep. John Conyers. All of a sudden I noticed at least 100 police officers in full riot gear blocking the route to the Colorado Convention Center which was the site of several caucus meetings and forums today. I then realized that there were hundreds of protestors that the police were trying to move away from the Pepsi Center, site of the first three convention sessions.

There are several groups in town to protest a wide range of issues, most prominently the Iraq War. One of these groups is called "Recreate '68" in homage to the widespread protests at the Chicago Convention of 1968. Funny thing was that most of the kids protesting downtown, waving black flags and wearing bandanas in case of tear gas were not even born in 1968!

I finally made my way to the Convention Center and attended a symposium sponsored The Denver Public Library, Rocky Mountain PBS and The Nation magazine. The program's title was "From Fannie Lou Hamer to Barack Obama: The Impact of the Civil Rights Movement on American Politics."

Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.), the newest member of the Congressional Black Caucus, and Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), the first Muslim to be elected to Congress, introduced Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich), the founder of the Congressional Black Caucus. Rep. Conyers spoke about the historical links between the civil rights movement and U.S. politics over the last 44 years. The program was an excellent example of the incredible opportunities for delegates and local citizens to take advantage of during a political convention. There will be plenty of speeches and hoopla at the Pepsi Center and Invesco Field this week but there will be much substance being presented and debated in the convention hall as well as the streets of Denver.

Monday is the opening session of the Convention. The North Carolina delegation meets at 8am for breakfast and to receive our credentials. I am excited about the awesome responsibility of being a delegate. I am honored to represent those North Carolinians who voted for Hillary Clinton and will forever be proud to be associated with Senator Clinton.
It is going to be a week of hard work to unify Democrats but I truly believe that the party's leaders will do just that culminating in the nomination of Senator Barack Obama for President.