Although I am a critic of Sen. Barack Obama, and I assume I will be a critic of him in the coming years unless he surprises me by being more of a moderate than I think he is, today marks a great day nonetheless. The reason is that Obama’s victory proves once again that the American Dream is real and that if someone wants to reach the top, he or she can do so, regardless of the color of his (her) skin, gender, family heritage and parents.

Obama is the son of an immigrant from Kenya. Most of his relatives are Muslim, as were his biological and stepfather. His cousins living in Kenya are Muslim, and quite religious at that. The other part of his relatives are white and Christian or not religious. Obama is black, while America was ruled by segregation for 100 years, and before that slavery was prevalent and considered ‘the right place’ for blacks.

But yesterday evening that man won the presidential election. For the first time in history, a black with a Muslim-Christian background won. And he did not just win, he won in a landslide, winning states that have traditionally been red and accuses of xenophobia and even downright racism.

That alone is truly a great accomplishment, and a testimony to America’s morality, open-mindedness and tolerance. Blacks were told for centuries that they could never become president, that there was one thing they could not accomplish simply because of the color of their skin. Yesterday proved this to be incorrect: nothing holds them back if they want to achieve the highest. The sky is the limit, as it always was in ‘the land of the free and the home of the brave.’

In the coming years, it is likely that we here at PoliGazette, which is generally moderate conservative, will criticize Obama’s policies and actions, and defend him every now and then when we believe his policies make sense. But during those years, when we criticize him, we should never forget that this man’s victory was long considered impossible and that by his victory alone, he has done more for his country than many others in their entire lifetime.

It is a great day to be an American, and a great day to be an America watcher. We in Europe can only hope that we too will once elect a member of a minority Prime Minister (or in some countries president). Xenophobia, racism and Islamophobia are increasing here on the old continent, but America showed that it can also be different, that immigrants and their children can play an important role in society if we only let them.

And for that, for that I, a conservative Dutchman, thank Obama – and the American people.