COMMENT | Biden’s win and the power of the people

COMMENT | The wait is finally over.

After four days of drama, during which the eyes of the world were transfixed upon the slow, meticulous process of counting the ballots in crucial US states, we finally know who will be the next president of America.

Biden’s win is significant in many ways. He has garnered more votes than any other president-elect in the history of the US. In fact, despite the Covid-19 pandemic ravaging the country, this US election saw record turnout. Many voters chose to cast their votes via mail.

Joe Biden’s win also meant that the US will have its first female vice-president in Kamala Harris, notable also because of her mixed-race background. America, it seems, has reinforced itself as truly the land of opportunities, despite the systemic racism prevalent in the country.

Four years ago, when Donald Trump won the presidency, I was involved in several passionate informal debates with friends on what his tenure would look like. One of the discussions occurred after he took office, when one of his first action was to impose what is termed as the "Muslim ban".

Executive Order 13769 suspended entry of visitors from several Muslim majority countries and was described by many human rights organisation as a human rights violation.

It was argued then that Trump was merely doing what he...