14 Memorable Black News Events of The Decade

The Election of Barack Obama

It was a day that no one in the black community expected to see in their lifetime. On Nov. 4, 2008, Barack Hussein Obama was elected the first African-American president of the United States. The former U.S. senator from Illinois resonated with voters across ages and races with his call for change in Washington, reminding them that he too had a middle-class upbringing in a strong family and believes in hard work and education. Despite being met with constant criticism, Obama has successfully spearheaded a number of initiatives: he’s expanded Pell grants to help low-income students pay for college; established the credit card bill of rights to prevent credit card companies from imposing arbitrary rate increases on customers; signed into effect the American Recovery Reinvestment Act of 2009 and passed health care reform.