Hundreds of people stood in 15- degree Fahrenheit temperatures at Chicago's Pioneer court in downtown to watch Chicagoan Barack Obama's presidential inauguration on Tuesday.
The people gathered at Pioneer court had come from a rejoicing city's neighborhoods, but also tourists from other countries -- Germany, Ireland, Canada and others.
"We are happy at this moment, because we want change and we are confident Obama will bring changes," Cisse, a black young man working at a gas station in Chicago, told Xinhua.
"Obama is young and talented, he will be able to make the people united in overcoming the economic crisis," said Mathewson, a Chicagoan.
Asked about the race issue, she said, "although Obama is an African American, the race issue could not be over in a day or two as it is deeply rooted. Anyhow, it will be going better."
According to local reports, from shops and restaurants to schools and churches, thousands of Illinoisans paused to witness the inauguration of Barack Obama as the nation's first black president.
The DuSable Museum of African-American history in Chicago's Washington Park was filled with hundreds of people this morning, all awaiting the swearing-in of President-elect Barack Obama.
The predominantly black audience in the museum's auditorium jumped to their feet and applauded at the stage's massive video screen when Obama took the oath, and burst into chuckles when he stumbled over the words "office faithfully."
By the time the oath finished, American flags were waving and fists were pumping into the air. Many wore Obama-decorated hats, sweaters, buttons and even book bags.
Wilverlyn Williams, 83, said that her brother taught Martin Luther King Jr. philosophy at Morehouse College and that Obama's inauguration proves the U.S. has come a long way on civil rights issues.
"It makes me feel extremely happy that I've lived this long," she said.
(Xinhua News Agency January 21, 2009)
