A Momentous Day
By Keith Boykin, in pop culture
Monday, June 23 2003, 9:39AM
After two weeks of vacation from this site, I'm back at work today, and I have a feeling it's going to be a very good day. The weather is nice. I'm relaxed and refreshed. And if the Supreme Court does what I expect it to do, it's going to be a big day indeed.
It's just 9:39 in the morning as I write this, but already the sun is shining in New York. Ordinarily such a regular occurrence might not deserve to be mentioned, but this has been no ordinary year in New York. In fact, this has been one of the longest winters I've ever experienced.
Summer officially began two days ago, but those of us in New York know that winter never left. Instead, we were teased along for months by a possibility of spring that never materialized.
Today I'm told the temperature will reach 85 degrees and will remain warm throughout much of the week. I'm quite grateful.
I just got back from Europe and I was disappointed to discover the bad weather here in New York never disappeared. Over the weekend, I went to a fundraiser in the Hamptons and there again it rained. On the other hand, the temperature in Paris when I was there was about 20 degrees warmer than the temperature in New York.
I've been out of town more than a dozen times over the long winter and spring, and each time I have left with the hope that the weather would improve in New York. Until now, each time I have been disappointed. Today I'm happy and hopeful for better days.
I'm also hopeful about some predictions I made a few weeks ago in Europe. I predicted then that the Supreme Court would strike down the Texas antigay sodomy law and uphold the University of Michigan's affirmative action policy. I have every reason to believe the Supreme Court will issue its decision on these two cases this week, possibly as early as this morning.
If the decision comes today, June 23 will truly be a momentous day not only for the change in the weather but for the change in the political climate of the country.