Students at Saint Mary’s joined millions of people around the world on January 20th to watch history as Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. The ceremony was shown live in the Scotiabank Theatre Auditorium, and by the time Obama put his hand on the Bible the auditorium was filled to capacity. Journalists from several different media companies were watching and interviewing students as to why they came to watch the event; they got one answer repeatedly, that they knew they were witnessing what was to be a defining moment of the generation.

Although the event certainly was momentous, it was not without its hiccups. A miscue by U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts caused Obama to make a mistake while taking the oath of office, and he took it again the next day just to make sure that he was actually legally sworn in.

Media reaction to Obama’s inaugural speech was generally positive, with many comparing it to his past great speeches. Not all reaction to the speech was positive; Jon Stewart compared it to many of George Bush’s speeches, and actually ran video of Obama’s speech next to a Bush speech in order to make his point. The Washington Editor of Harper’s Magazine, Ken Silverstein, called the line “We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defence,” both Bush-like and troubling, and a continuance of the American attitude of Exceptionalism that has existed since World War 2. Silverstein also noted that Obama’s best moment, when he talked about the American Revolution, was actually taken from Thomas Paine. Others in the media criticized Obama for being too anti-Bush in his speech when former President George Bush himself was right behind him.

At Saint Mary’s reaction to the speech was nearly universally positive and some in the auditorium shed tears at what they thought was a new beginning for the world’s most powerful country and ergo, the world. The auditorium sat quiet throughout the speech and only began to move and empty out after Obama had finished. Even then, many in the audience stayed for the post-speech benediction before leaving.

The significance of the event at Saint Mary’s can be put into perspective by comparison with one of the only other times that the auditorium has been used in the same way, to cover the events following September 11th. While both events happened in the United States, the effect which they had on the psyche of the world was arguably universal. As one observer said, the events can be seen as bookends to the Bush-era; the first event bringing fear to the world, and Obama’s inauguration bringing hope to it.