Friends gathering in Washington D.C. from the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority (left to right) Berna Greer, of Houston, Texas, Deborah Hill Burroughs, of Oklahoma City Oklahoma, Shirley Flournoy, of Los Angeles, California, and Vanessa Rogers Long, of Clarksdale, Mississippi, review their newly purchased inaugural programs the day before Barack Obama is sworn in as the 44th president. (Corey Lowenstein/Raleigh News & Observer/MCT) (Corey Lowenstein/MCT)