"I remember having to walk to the back of the restaurant past the white families to be served dinner" Cynthia Williams, who is in the front row, tells me. "This is the dream. We are living a dream that became reality. Not being there was not possible." As a child of rural South Carolina, Williams is one of the 17 people and three children riding to the Inauguration on an eco bus which departed at 1pm from the Highbridge section of the Bronx.
After a wrong turn, which had us heading North to Albany, we are now on I 95 just crossing out of New Jersey in Delaware.
The group giving us a ride to tell their stories is from the Highbridge Community Life Center. They paid for the bus to transport those involved in local groups committed to making the South Bronx a better place to live, work and raise children.
Our group encompasses several neighborhood associations: United Parents of Highbridge (fighting for a middle school), SOY (Service Our Youth), Coalition of Educational Justice, Ghetto Film School, Sisters and Brothers United, and the Gambian Society of New York.
We shot great video of the group cheering, "From the Bronx to D.C., President Obama here we come!"
As most photographers know its hard to shoot on a bumpy bus. Photographer Bryan White has his work cut out for him balancing the camera, looking through the viewfinder and maintaining his footing on the slippery floor.
We are doing this to chronicle the journey firsthand. This historic moment has people from near and far struggling to be part of this moment.
Tonight on Eyewitness News, we will bring you some of their personal stories. I hope you tune in!
