Oh yeah, racism is gone. Racism went away with the sixties.” Or, at least that seems to be a common statement people make today. Let’s take a quick look at the political race going on right now with McCain and Obama. Much of the fear campaign that is going on is the publicity that Obama is a Muslim. Numerous photos, cropped pictures, and drawings are being made and passed around to make a case against Obama. First off, if he was Muslim, which he has said numerous times he is not and even states that he is a Christian, why would it matter? Would it matter because Muslims were the attackers of 9/11? Is it because we think the majority of Muslims are Arabic? Second, does it matter that Obama is black and therefore not white? Do these things matter and do they have an impact in the world we live in and the things we do on a daily basis?
While waiting to board a plane from Chicago to Richmond, Virginia, I was listening to the news program the airport was showing on the television. The coverage was interviews of what people thought of Obama, what they knew about him, and ultimately if they would vote for him in November. This news channel seemed to be making their way around the U.S. to various states to get different views of what people’s thoughts were. The day I was waiting in the airport they were interviewing people at a local minor league baseball game in Tennessee. The first lady that was interviewed was asked if she would vote for Obama. Without hesitating she said, “No, because he is a Muslim.” The news coverage quickly refuted that statement to the watching audience that indeed Obama was not Muslim, but actually Christian. Who knows if they told that to the woman at the ballgame. The second person interviewed was asked the same question. He, also without hesitation answered, “No, because I don’t think a black man can be president.” A split second later, the black man sitting next to me at the airport gave a chuckle as to say I can’t believe people still are like that. It was one of those embarrassing white moments. Those moments were you are embarrassed to be white, because of the continuing actions and history of the white people.
It’s no surprise not to see pictures of McCain in a turban. You can try, too. All I got were more pictures of Obama in a turban. McCain doesn’t even have a name that sounds like Osama and when you put a turban on him, quite frankly he doesn’t look a terrorist in the mind of an American, maybe just a bad costume during Halloween.
So, why does this matter? Well, because racism has always been a part of American society and politics. Race does matter. The man at the baseball game made that clear. Race may not affect Obama as much. The most he may lose is the election. But, as I stepped into Richmond you can see the remnants of a society still built on the Civil War. When I came back to Chicago I was reminded even in the North of the policies and laws that effect blacks today. By the way, in Tennessee Obama got rocked by Clinton in the Primaries.
For more reading on race and politics I recommend: Alienable Rights by Adams and Sanders.
While waiting to board a plane from Chicago to Richmond, Virginia, I was listening to the news program the airport was showing on the television. The coverage was interviews of what people thought of Obama, what they knew about him, and ultimately if they would vote for him in November. This news channel seemed to be making their way around the U.S. to various states to get different views of what people’s thoughts were. The day I was waiting in the airport they were interviewing people at a local minor league baseball game in Tennessee. The first lady that was interviewed was asked if she would vote for Obama. Without hesitating she said, “No, because he is a Muslim.” The news coverage quickly refuted that statement to the watching audience that indeed Obama was not Muslim, but actually Christian. Who knows if they told that to the woman at the ballgame. The second person interviewed was asked the same question. He, also without hesitation answered, “No, because I don’t think a black man can be president.” A split second later, the black man sitting next to me at the airport gave a chuckle as to say I can’t believe people still are like that. It was one of those embarrassing white moments. Those moments were you are embarrassed to be white, because of the continuing actions and history of the white people.
It’s no surprise not to see pictures of McCain in a turban. You can try, too. All I got were more pictures of Obama in a turban. McCain doesn’t even have a name that sounds like Osama and when you put a turban on him, quite frankly he doesn’t look a terrorist in the mind of an American, maybe just a bad costume during Halloween.
So, why does this matter? Well, because racism has always been a part of American society and politics. Race does matter. The man at the baseball game made that clear. Race may not affect Obama as much. The most he may lose is the election. But, as I stepped into Richmond you can see the remnants of a society still built on the Civil War. When I came back to Chicago I was reminded even in the North of the policies and laws that effect blacks today. By the way, in Tennessee Obama got rocked by Clinton in the Primaries.
For more reading on race and politics I recommend: Alienable Rights by Adams and Sanders.
1 comment:
Good work. Seriously. I'm doing a project on political issues African Americans face in the U.S. today for my African American Humanities class and not only did this help me, but everyone could benefit from gaining the insight posted above. Thanks
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