Dawn Turner Trice, Chicago Tribune
- Minnesota delegate Sylvia Berry Adams grew up listening to stories of her college-educated grandparents having to answer questions about the U.S. Constitution before they could vote in Virginia.
“Sometimes blacks had to guess how many jelly beans were in a jar,” said Adams, 62. “This is what blacks went through before they could vote. And this is why this moment is so special.”
“This moment” belongs to Sen. Barack Obama, who on Wednesday will become the first African-American to win the nomination for president by a major party. But many African-American delegates celebrating on the floor of Denver’s Pepsi Center will tell you that the moment also belongs to them and to anyone else who knows (or has lived) the history of being locked out of the democratic process.
