Mourning Becomes a Nation

Tomorrow, June 11, has been declared the national day of mourning for the passing of former president Ronald Reagan. The tributes and the eulogies have begun to pour forth for the former president, and tomorrow, California state and U.S. Federal offices are closed in remembrance of the former president.

He was elected to his first term as president in 1980. I was 13 years old at the time. I remember staying up late election night to hear the returns from the presidential election. I remember my parents being glad that Reagan won the election, as my parents have always favored the Republican agenda (fairly common for Asian Americans). I wasn't too happy, being a Democrat and supporting Jimmy Carter, being non-traditionalist even back then.

Ronald Reagan has been called the Great Communicator. If nothing else, he certainly has stirred the emotion of a country. Up until today, I have been hearing only positive things about the former president in the newscasts and articles about his passing. On the radio into work today, on KQED, the local national public radio station, I heard a news bit on the California Report, and another on Forum both talking about the negative legacies of the Reagan era, in an attempt to balance the overall picture of the Reagan presidency.

There's no doubt that Ronald Reagan did some great things for this country in terms of restoring hope, morale, and overall confidence in a nation. And certainly he will be remembered as a great leader. But the thing that struck me most was what the California Report said about Reagan's history on the AIDS crisis. Although the crisis started in 1981, Reagan did not make a formal statement on AIDS until 1987, after 20,000 had already passed away from the epidemic, and many more were afflicted. He had an opportunity to make such a difference and chose to pass on that chance.

Tomorrow, we will mourn the loss of a great man, and people all over the world will watch us, with awe, inspiration, and hope. I will join in the remembrance and the honoring, but I will always remember, he could have done so much more.