The Man Who Little Birds Love

It was a sunny Saturday afternoon in September 2015 that i first saw him on TV in a restaurant somewhere in central Lagos, ironically on a station that was notorious of being dismissive of his campaign - CNN. The news report was on how he is trailing behind his major opponent by over 30 points.

"who is he, this Bernie Sanders guy?", i turned to ask my friend.

"dunno" he shrugged

Prior to my first hearing/sighting of Bernie Sanders, i wasn't overtly interested in the US election primaries or any political movement at all.  I had a slight distant fondness for Hillary, a woman trying trying to make history, sounds good. I equally had a lil respect for the apprentice guy, didn't know much bout him, but he sounded like a go-getter. I didn't care much about who will eventually win.

In a couple of weeks all this changed.

I started following the US elections more closer. The more i read about Bernie Sanders, the more i came to love him. The more i read about the other contestants, even deeper i fell for Bernie Sanders.

By December/January, it had become a fever, seeing i couldn't vote for him as i'm not a US citizen, i engaged in every other way i could help which involved trying to get the American friends i had on my Facebook and Instagram to support him, sharing links and memes about him (thank you Bernie Sanders dank meme stash), engaging in online debates(that occasionally turned into tirades) on Facebook pages that bashed Bernie or shared links that bashed him ( fox news page and mother Jones page especially), i removed my location from Nigeria and left it blank to deter attackers who visited my page to point out i wasn't a citizen, used my identity as a black guy to push harder (since it was assumed that all black people supported Madam Clinton)

I recall googling up his name every morning to gobble up every new article about him. Every new fact i learnt about him was a polished treasure to keep. There were many reasons to love him; His life long fight against inequality of all forms, his authenticity, his underdog status, his refreshing nonconformity to the standard detrimental political procedures of today.  Of course, he was no saint but he was the poster boy for wannabe saints and clearly way better than the other options.  It was saddening and annoying that some people, especially people of colour, were not rooting for him. what more could anyone want in a president?  From continents away i could see his realness, even his opponent could see his realness and started sounding more and more like a Bernie Sanders cover band. One great thing about this period was the new friends i made from different Bernie support pages and how it strengthened certain friendships i already had, most memorable being the months long Facebook exchanges between me and Charlene pool in Missouri where we talked about nothing else but Bernie Sanders, exchanging links, memes and words of encouragement. (Thanks for the Feel The Bern Mug, Charlene, It's forever my favorite mug)

As the primary progressed, so did my Bernie  fever; I recall waking up by 1 am or 2 am to track the primary and caucus results on my phone. There was a particular night when there was no power and my phone battery sizzled out, i dreamt that night that Bernie won the Michigan primary against all odds and woke up to find out he did . That wasn't the last time i dreamt about the primaries but it was the last time my Bernie dreams came true.

After the disappointing New York primary  that was plagued with accusations of electoral malpractice, well practically all the elections were plagued by the same accusations (some which were eventually confirmed) things got worse and eventually reached toppling point after the Californian primary which he surprisingly  lost. There was still a glimmer of hope that the convention might bring some change because he clearly polled better against the apprentice guy in polls than Madam Clinton  for the general elections, but alas all hopes were crashed.

Reading that Bernie wasn't the democratic nominee brought upon me a cloak of sadness that lasted for weeks. The dem party in following the status quo blew up a great chance. It's true that Bernie started a movement that will outlive him but his presidency would have been one of the best gifts America had ever given the world

True leaders are selfless and make the best decisions, not for themselves, but for the people they represent and the greater good. Bernie realized that a unified Democratic party under Hillary in its worst state is still better than a Trump led Republican party. Real people following this election know that Sanders made a true impact on people (not just in america but all over the world), the process, and the Democratic Party's platform. I will always #feelthebern, regardless of what position he holds. 

If i was an american citizen, i'll listen to the words of Bernie, follow the path he has set and vote for the person who truly reflects his ideals, Jill Stein.