KWENU: Our Culture, Our Future

The grand, glorious farewell: The Reagan style

·        As we mourn the loss of the distinct voice of Ray Charles to death

ACHO ORABUCHI

Dallas, Texas

A_Orabuchi@yahoo.com

Tuesday, June 22, 2004

While Alzheimer's slowly and uncaringly robbed us of Ronald Reagan, liver disease sent Ray Charles to the receiving arms of death for eternal rest. Combating these debilitating diseases and others like them becomes our collective responsibility.

Undeniably, grace, emotion, respect, solemnity, somberness, and national pride, which permeated the funeral of Ronald Wilson Reagan, knew no bounds. People all over the world were overwhelmed with emotions as the nation bided farewell to Ronald Wilson Reagan, the 40^th President of the United States of America, who went to be with the Lord on Saturday afternoon, June 5, 2004 at the age of 93. He was led to rest at sunset on Friday, June 11, 2004 on the grounds of the Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. We join his family, especially Nancy Reagan, who married him for 52 memorable years, to continue to live his legacy!

Indeed, Friday was a day of mourning for the nation and a federal public holiday. Federal government offices, including many states’, counties’, and cities’ offices were closed for business on Friday, June 11, 2004 to honor Reagan. Reagan lived a good life and positively torched many lives, including mine. That could explain the outpouring of affection from all kinds of people. Ordinarily, former American presidents usually die at a prime age Reagan died at the age of 93—the third former president to live past 90 after John Adams and Herbert Hoover respectively.

Over 130,000 people viewed the flag-draped coffin lying in repose in presidential library in California before the body was flown to Washington, DC via Andrews Air force Base in a rare procession on Constitution Avenue, where additional thousands of people lined up to view.

While lying in state at the US Capitol Rotunda for three days, Wednesday to Friday before the funeral service at Washington National Cathedral, about 150,000 viewed the US flag-draped casket.

Reagan’s glorious funeral witnessed a convergence of scores of foreign dignitaries and Americans who not only come to mourn the man, but also to be part of history. The state funeral service was conducted at the magnificent Washington National Cathedral and in attendance were representatives from about 180 countries, including about 25 current and 11 former foreign leaders who came to pay their last respect to Ronald Reagan. The rendition and eulogies were fitting for one who had touched so many lives globally.

Interestingly, people wanted to mourn him indefinitely if given the opportunity. Why couldn’t people let go? The answer is definitely not in words. The man was charming and had unparalleled charismatic qualities.

I came to America in my early 20s on a student visa in 1981 a few months after Ronald Wilson Reagan had been sworn in as the 40^th president of the United States. Though I followed sparingly from afar the presidential campaign between President Jimmy Carter, the incumbent and Ronald Reagan because of hostage crisis, which made the fall 1980 elections all too important to the world community and particularly Americans.

My coming to America offered me a rare opportunity for full introduction into presidential system and the workings of the levels and braches of government. Being a full time student in a small university town, Cheney in Washington State, without a car, and with limited social activities, I spent most of my leisure time watching C-SPAN, CNN, and other network news on my small screen TV set. I also used the time to read periodicals, magazines, and newspapers. These media outlets in conjunction with academic activities offered me the opportunity to learn many national and international issues with both current and historical perspectives. As a matter of fact, I became more informed on national and international issues than an average American.

Because of my interest, I started following the events and policies of President Reagan. I despised some of his domestic policies at that time because of my belief that they were anti “small man” and repressive in tone. I did not believe in Reaganomics and its trickle down concept though I kept my feeling to myself. However, I was struck by the way people, especially the opposition, were criticizing the president openly without fear of reprisal. Coming from Africa as a nonimmigrant, I had two strikes against me already. As a result, I thought of Reagan’s tone as incendiary that would be a waterfront for racism. Tersely speaking, I was neither part of Reagan Revolution nor did I believe that I would benefit from Reaganomics, which was once called Voodoo economics by George Bush, who later became the vice president to Ronald Reagan.

However, over the years I grew to admire Reagan due to his character and his ideological stance on most issues. He had uncanny ways of convincing everyone, including his detractors, to believe him; a fact undisputed by those who did not like his policies as president, but respected him.

If Reagan, who was a Democrat before becoming a Republican, could change ideologically, he would be nodding his head in agreement with those who despised his policies then, and only to retrace their ideological immaturity to embrace now, for the most part, what he stood for.

Ronald Reagan, having had humble beginnings in Tampico, Illinois, served humanity in many touchy ways before and during his presidency with dignity. While he saved many lives as a lifeguard, he touched quite a few with his poetry. He served as a governor of California in the late 1960s and early 1970s.  Reagan chose George Bush, who was at odds with his economic blueprints during the Republican primaries in 1980, as his running mate. George Bush, who later became president after Reagan in 1988, commemorated his 80^th birthday with a plunge of 13,000 feet above the see level from an airplane on Sunday, June 13, 2004.

Reagan, who survived an assassination attempt on March 30, 1981, accomplished great many things as a person and as a political leader. He appointed the first woman, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, to the highest court of the land, the US Supreme Court. Fifty-two Americans held hostage in Iran for 444 days were released the day Reagan was inaugurated in 1981. He was the voice and champion of an ideology that transcended both political parties, Democrat and Republican. He converted many Democrats to Republican Party. Even among the Democrats, he had also his constituency called the Reagan Democrats. This goes to demonstrate the level of plurality among his followers.

Reagan invited Ray Charles to perform at his second inaugural ceremony and Ray performed magnificently at the event. Ray Charles, a genius that evolved into a legend in music—the male singer that transformed the music culture with his unique and distinct voice and style, was silenced by death a day before Reagan was buried. Late Charles, a black, was born poor and became blind at a younger age. These negative factors did not stop him; Ray triumphed over them as they became source of strength to him. Truly, Ray Charles was a unique American success story. Ray Charles was to music what Reagan was to politics.

Reagan had an eerie way of compelling the admirers and detractors alike to stay on course in the face of adversity. His legacy lives on! It was during his administration that millions of nonimmigrant/illegal aliens were granted amnesty for permanent residency status. Millions of foreigners took advantage of the new law and consequently became US citizens.

Reagan beefed up America’s military might for a safer world. He engineered the demise of the evil empire, the fall of Berlin Wall, and most importantly he resuscitated the citizens of former communist countries with air of freedom they would cherish forever.

Remarkably, some people are permanently off the welfare roll today and in some families, the cycle of welfare dependent has been broken because of the vestiges of Reagan policies, which seemed harsh initially.

While the Democrats respected and praised him for his strength and political skills, the Republicans revered and idolized him for reinvigorating or rejuvenating the Republican Party and for providing hope and optimism to this generation. He was indeed highly esteemed by all people irrespective of one’s ideological or political persuasion. All these and much more could explain why the nation continues to be in a plaintive mood.

Though the country was not united in support for his policies, which he truly believed in, yet the nation was united in mourning his passing reminiscing the character of the man who preached optimism even in the face of adversity. A great loss to the greatest generation and our generation left an indelible mark in the annals of American history. I hope that Reagan’s death would help lift restrictions on and speed up embryonic stem-cell research in order to find the cure for Alzheimer's disease and other related diseases.

The Reagan’s death halted—I should say—saved us from partisan politics for one week. As we go about our daily lives with the assurance that the grief, stress and frustration, and the long farewell that began 10 years ago, when Reagan was first diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 1994, came to eternal conclusion with lingering memories of the man.