And so it went. This year's Chicago reunion was done relatively earlier than normal. It started with a rather urgent call from Chicago to come participate in the upcoming historic 2004 elections. For those not in the know, Illinois is the state vicinity where the much acclaimed Illinois Senator Barrack Obama of Kenyan descent was vying for a seat in the US Senate .
The focus of the reunion was not just to party as usual, but contribute time, effort and resources to a worthy cause. Together with the United Kenyans of Chicago (UKC), it was decided to demonstrate leadership in rallying the Kenyan and general African immigrant sectors in the state to voting, so we decided to show the Chicago locals how Kenyan election campaign works (without the hired mobs of course!)
Getting a senator into Washington is a big-time deal. Basically a US senator can be compared to Kenyan cabinet minister in profile except they outlast their congressional house representatives and even the president, by serving 6-year terms. In addition to the relative autonomy they enjoy, they wield great influence serving in senate committees that appropriate billions in annual budget draws and are a target source for lobbyists and PAC groups. So as the closest Kenyan source around, it was up to the Chicagoans to gather support and gain favor from him.
We basically met at the Preston Bradley Center where a delegation of sorts met, pledged and joined campaign.
Afterward, a get-together was hosted by Chicago's Top Donn at the Cubby Bear Club to wind down the day. Then the next day, the
outgoing Rev Dr. N'dungu Ikenye who is now Vicar of St. Andrews hosted an African Heritage Service. Its too bad that after the many sets of pics, with zoom, flashes and exposure adjustments, camera power died out early.Based on the primary
election results, the final showdown in November will be something to watch. Despite the hard work, it was rewarding and fun all through. The icing was when the senator signed a goodwill to yours truly on behalf of all.
Here are the pics to show:
