Our Man In Grant Park: The 44th President Of The United States

We invite you to share your reactions to Alan Chin’s images from Chicago last night. I’ll be adding some thoughts (and also some background) within the next couple hours, and Alan will available to respond in the discussion thread.

Update 9:33 PST: Alan has posted at least one comment to give some flavor. I thought I’d just add a few notes from our conversation earlier.

First, the entire event last evening was surprising short. From start to finish, Alan said it didn’t last more than two hours.

#2.) The people in the second shot are what Alan described as members of Obama’s political base in Chicago. They are middle-class, mid-level political staffers for Mayor Daley. #3) This field worker exemplifies, more than anything, how thoroughly exhausted everyone was last night. Alan said he was virtually asleep standing up. In a post I did for TPM Café, I also mention how the t-shirt documents how Obama (having won in ’96) started serving at the state level ten years before Sarah Palin did. #4) Personally, I can’t believe I never heard “Obamanomenon” before I saw this shot. I like it. #5) This was early, before Grant Park really filled up. #7/8.) In my edit, I left out four more shots of people either hugging or crying. That’s because they were a bit redundant, but also because it showed more young white people. Given his situation near the stage, Alan was mostly surrounded by young white field workers or VIP’s, so his close ups didn’t capture much demographic mix of Chicago residents. #13) That was the Mayor’s move to light up the office building with the “U.S.A.” #15) Alan said that the last shot was quite a moving moment. After Obama and his entourage left the stage, a throng of young workers (“foot soldiers of the inner circle”) took to the stage, bound by exhaustion and amazement.

(image ©Alan Chin. November 4th, 2008. Chicago, IL)