In New York, it seems that the whole country is happy about Biden's victory, but is this so?

“For two days I found myself in another world - we forgot about the crown, forgot about the problems - maybe this is now our new world!” Is what I heard when I walked into my coworking space in Brooklyn on Monday morning. My American neighbor said that for the first time in several years, she did not work on the weekend because she was celebrating the victory of Democratic leader Joe Biden. For the first time, at least since 1900, so many people voted. It was the first time America got a woman vice-president. “First time” is a good word as a starting point for change.

For me, perhaps, the most important “first time” is the feeling of celebration and unity that fell on New York on this sunny Saturday. After voting on November 3, experts could not predict the winner for three days - Trump was in the lead on Tuesday evening, and by Wednesday morning Biden was already leading. It became clearer only on Saturday, when Biden got more votes in vacillating Pennsylvania... The streets of New York exploded cars honked, people sang and danced, free sweets were handed out in stores, everyone was jubilant.

Let me remind you that in the United States, despite the presence of other candidates, only two are fighting among themselves - from the Democratic and Republican parties. Besides them, this time it was possible to vote for Kanye West and, for example, Brock Pierce. Offtopic: I was brought to his home when I was vacationing in Puerto Rico two years ago, and I didn't think about him until I saw him on the list of candidates a week ago. But the clash of the two is not inferior in intensity to your brightest football match. States are historically divided into those who supports Democrats, Republicans and those who have "undecided" (swing states) - the latter determine the outcome of the vote.

For example, in 2016, Trump won Pennsylvania by less than one percent, which shocked the Democrats (American Dharma, where Errol Morris interviews Trump adviser Stephen Bennon, describes manipulative techniques and the road to victory well). So Pennsylvania has been in the spotlight this year.

On Saturday I walked around Manhattan, and even me was overwhelmed by universal joy, and I am not a citizen, I did not vote, I don’t understand American politics, and generally I find it difficult to succumb to mass joys. United by common values, people congratulated each other on the streets and said that “they believe in America again” and “finally the whole country is rejoicing”. New Yorkers took this as a personal victory - I was even a little jealous of how society empathized with political conclusions. In the evening, the bar put on a screen with a broadcast of CNBC and the speeches of Vice President Kamala Harris and President Joe Biden - and we listened, clapped and hugged (hello coronavirus).

But let's look at the numbers again: in the state of Georgia, 49,5% supported Biden, and 49,3% supported Trump. In Pennsylvania, 49,8% supported Biden and 49,1% supported Trump. Half of the people voted for Trump. And this is not a falsification of ballots and changes in the Constitution, these are legitimate elections.

It is clear that 78-year-old Biden is not an ideal candidate for Americans either. It is more honest to call victorious delight “now without Trump” than “we are for Biden”. On Saturday, an American friend of mine wrote, "It feels like the country has breathed a sigh of relief for the first time after four years of fear."

The country is, of course, an exaggeration. It is tempting to think that now the coronavirus will go away, the state of Mississippi will rejoice in Biden's victory, and new visas will be issued to migrants. Towards Dreams and Opportunities is a powerful American idea that Harris and Biden relied on in their speeches, but the disunity of people has not gone anywhere, and, perhaps, will only increase. On the day before the election, shops on Fifth Avenue boarded up their windows, fearing a repeat of the scenario of the Black Lives Matter protests, when looters smashed glass and pulled out goods.

One of the main complaints about Trump is the rhetoric built on resentment and hatred. The message “Everyone is to blame, but not me” does not help to establish a dialogue. On the other hand, the liberal media are so reluctant to hear his voice that Twitter adds disclaimers to every tweet, journalists cut words from texts, explaining this by their mission restrict readers from misinformation, and do not skimp on contemptuous descriptions. It is clear that such a reaction does not please American conservatives.

Overcoming the division becomes the main task of the Biden-Harris tandem. In opposition to Trump, they built their speech on calls for calm, unity and understanding. Bringing the states together under one common idea, when they barely hear each other (and right now the conservatives are convinced that Biden won by trickery) sounds like an ambitious goal.

But no matter what happens next and no matter how anyone feels about Biden, there is a common reason for joy - a woman vice president appeared for the first time in America. “I am the first woman to achieve this high office, but not the last. Because all American girls see that the country is giving them that opportunity. Keep your dreams high, be single-minded. We will support you along the way. ”Harris said in her opening speech, and this seems important today regardless of political views. And in the biography of her husband, attorney Douglas Emhoff, the line “The first second gentleman in the US” appeared - and we saw such a status for the first time too.

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