Watching Barack Obama accept the nomination at the Democratic National Convention, I was stunned by how proud I felt to see people of every race, gender and creed taking part in the process - speaking, debating, protesting, nominating, conceding, championing, building, educating...and making history

Regardless of your politics, today is a day to celebrate. We have turned a new corner as a nation, and it will have deep and lasting implications.

Today, our country, a symbol of freedom and equality to many beyond its borders, breaks through a new boundary - taking that symbol to new heights.

Today is a day of historic import, commemorating civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr's landmark speech describing his dream of justice and racial equality. It is a momentous day, as Barack Obama became the first African-American nominated by a major political party for the Presidency of the United States of America. It is a meaningful day, as we renew the self-evident truth that all men are created equal.

Today, we are offered a reminder of our responsibility to wake ourselves up, to dream beyond what others think possible, to be courageous, to break down walls, to build up others, to scale new heights, to never accept "impossible", to face the odds, to remember our strength, to seize the day. And we are offered a challenge of mutual responsibility to build communities and lives worthy of the opportunity before us.

Or to paraphrase Mahatma Gandhi, We must be the change we wish to see in the world.

Reprinted from Revolution Me!