Barack Obama: On White Women

Let’s be honest. A group of sullen faced black dudes hanging out on a corner dressed in ethnic garb is threatening…period. Not just to “white women”, but to anyone who passes. Same deal with a group of white guys with jeans down around their butt, tattoos encircling their arms, scowling at you as you approach. This isn’t about race or prejudice, it’s about intimidation. How, exactly, does Obama think white women should react in this situation?

I once was present at a lecture given by the Director of Multicultural Affairs at a local university. One of his issues with whites was that they never looked a black person in the eye when passing them on the campus. I quickly pointed out to him that friendliness is a two-way street. How many times has that black person looked me in the eye with a smile as opposed to a glare? How many photos of black men with warm smiles have you seen? Don’t let Barack Obama deflect the blame. God gave us a fear response to protect us from harm. Black women are just as fearful of those dudes on the corner as white women are and if someone of any color glares at me, I will not be inclined to greet them with a big smile.

There will always be prejudice…racial, ethnic, geographical, political, sexual…and there will always be fear of those who present a threatening demeanor. Stereotypes aren’t developed in a room by some writer attempting to develop a character. They are born of incidents that happen again and again through a long history of events. The number of times that stereotypes prove to be true is what keeps them alive. So don’t insult and demean me by asking me to overlook your anger or attitude…change it!

Barack Obama: Not Ready for Prime Time

There’s been a lot of outrage this week about a comment made by Geraldine Ferraro:

“If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position. And if he was a woman of any color, he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is. And the country is caught up in the concept.”

The mystique began several years ago when the media talked about the young black senator from Illinois. In a December 11, 2005, interview with The Sunday Times, George Clooney said,

“...Obama, 44, has been dubbed his party’s “great black hope” and is widely seen as a credible candidate to become America’s first black president…he could attract the two groups who rarely show up to vote — young people and blacks. He’s the guy to get behind.”

Was Clooney’s remark racist? If Obama were white, would he have been his party’s “great white hope”? Politics is all about public recognition…name recognition. If you are not known or memorable to the public, you stand very little hope of competing in politics. Every successful candidate has had something that made them remarkable. Obama is an eloquent speaker, but the thing that makes him memorable is the color of his skin.

There are large numbers of people in this country to whom color makes no difference…they are white. There are also large numbers of people to whom color makes a big difference…they are black. They are people like like Jesse Jackson, Rev. Jeremiah Wright and Louis Farrakhon who want the issue to be color. Not only does it provide them with job security, but it allows them to use the cry of racism to deflect criticism and avoid answering the tough questions. Otherwise, Barack Obama may not stand up to the scrutiny. If they are successful in their intimidation, we may soon have a president who will never be questioned or criticized.