CaribWorldNews, NEW YORK, NY, Fri. June 6, 2008: It`s been part of the Caribbean discourse for weeks now, weaving itself into countless conversations, TV news segments, and newspaper op-eds. Then, what was lilting background music turned into full-on fanfare when Barack Obama’s quest to be the president of the U.S. broke historic ground on Tuesday, after he crossed the delegate threshold to become the presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party.

He`s the first black person to get this far, and newspapers across the Caribbean trumpeted the achievement. Now, days later, residents of the Caribbean are still weighing in, inserting themselves into the international chorus of voices cheering Obama on.

`The respect of the world we now lack, if you want it back, then vote Barack,` sings soca legend in `Barack The Magnificient.` A link to a YouTube recording of the song is given a prominent position on the Monserrat Reporter’s Web site homepage. The counterpart of the Nassau Guardian boasts a large photo of a grinning man in a baseball cap proudly holding up a Barack Obama t-shirt.

`We eagerly await the choice of the U.S. people, as that country goes to the polls in November,` Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Patrick Manning said in an interview published yesterday in that country’s Daily Express newspaper. He called Obama’s candidacy `a breath of fresh air in a world in which some things have been going wrong.`

As befitting Obama’s theme of unity and cross-partisan cooperation, Manning was joined in his sentiments by political opponents. Opposition MP Kamla Persad-Bissessar called Obama’s nomination `a defining moment in world history.`

`Win or lose in the general election,` she said. `This achievement paves the way for a new world order where the second class in the free world can truly believe that there is opportunity at times to become a first-class citizen.`

Raining on the parade somewhat, Jamaican politicians were a little more pragmatic in their reaction.

`I think it's going to be difficult to say what this means for Jamaica,`Opposition Deputy General Secretary Julian Robinson told the Jamaica Observer. `We haven't seen from his foreign policy what his approach to Jamaica, the Third World and the Caribbean will be. So, apart from the emotion of his winning, I think it's hard to say what his presidency could mean.`

Robinson nevertheless acknowledged the historic nature of Obama’s nomination, which comes 40 years after black Americans secured the right to vote. – By Earline Andrews/CWN/NY