Absolutely, as the blog-post at this link documents. Pictures and video from a recent "Women for Obama" get-together near the Twin Cities (in Northfield, the home of late Senator Paul Wellstone) - the speaker of the Minnesota State House of Representatives, Margaret Anderson Kelliher, even called in.
I hope the name never keeps anybody from attending. Look at the pictures... there were children present. This was literally dozens of people, lots of energy, lots of ideas, lots of commitment, synergy, and even though it was mostly women, there were a few men, too.
On Friday September 7th San Francisco played host to an event called "Women For Obama." Some newspapers described the event as "Senator Obama's attempt at courting the Women vote." Well, first, for all who were there, it was more than an attempt - it really hit the mark. Second, it drew over 3,000 people, some -- like myself -- paying from $25 to as much as $2,300 to see hear, and greet the Senator. Third, like every Obama event, it was more than a political speech, it was part happening, part teach-in, part love fest, and part convention, with the Senator as ringleader.
One has to attend an event like this to really tangibly understand the impact he has on people. Senator Obama is the best example of how individuals and the human sprit that rests in all of us matter. When some of the mainstream media asks "Is America ready for.." I automatically know the person asking the question is either inhuman, blind to the human sprit, or some combination of both.
The event itself was put together by a vast combination of people, lead by San Francisco District Attorney Kamela Harris, and a group of people called "Women For Obama," and of which my friend Rosa Cabrera (who started another group called "Rise Up For Obama) was part of -- and gave a good speech. But the most impressive aspect of the event to me was the number of college-age young women who were there -- at least a thousand of the 3,000 people. Moreover, many adults brought their kids to see him, so the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium had a vast combination of little ones running around.
Obama's speech started off almost pro-forma, but then he got rolling. He talked about familar themes like ending the Iraq War, but attacked the idea of his "lack of experience" by explaining that at times having too much experience -- in Washington -- causes one to make mistakes, like the Iraq war. Obama also emotively talked about his mother's battle with ovarian cancer and how she was more worried about her medical bills than her own health, thus fueling his desire to have Universal Health Care for all Americans.
But the real star of the event, other than the Senator himself, were the thousands of people, many representing online groups formed on BarackObama.com, which came together to form a successful event. When the story of this campaign is written, it will be of how everything from event planning to fundraising was driven from a great website system that's frankly without peer. It's the Obama campaign's secret weapon, and it's only secret because many in politics still don't understand how to use the Internet -- but they do and they're getting better at it each month.
