From what I saw in the video below, Wright seems more like the Malcolm Little type. Outspoken, unafraid, and angry. And there's nothing wrong with a little angered channeled the
Barack's former pastor's (Jeremiah Wright) comments...
Barack's response...
What do you think?
Yet another great speech by Barack, but let's not get too caught up in the ability to give a great speech. What is he really saying? Better yet, what is he not saying?
I think that Barack does a masterful job of straddling the fence on whether he is pro-Black or pro-America and it's probably in his best interest at this point to do so. I'm sure we can all see that being pro-America does NOT inherently mean pro-Black. If you can't, then shame on you (you Republican, LOL). Right now I think Barack is more pro-America which makes sense considering he's not running for President of Black people in America but the President of the United States of America. Yet-and-still, there is a social responsibility - some might even say obligation - as the potential first Black president of all the times to find a way to serve some of the major needs of his people. Especially considering the fact that he identifies with his Black lineage and speaks on some of the trials and tribulations he faced growing up as a Black man in the U.S.
Barack has the unfortunate job of trying to maintain that straddling of the fence until he (perhaps) makes it into the Oval Office. Once in the Oval Office though, will he be more Malcolm than MLK? I'm sure his pastor (and many others) hopes that he will. But that remains to be seen.
I don't think that the pastor's remarks were derogatory to the point where they should be called stupid or outright denounced. They were perhaps simplistic and stereotypical (like Barack mentioned), but yet-and-still not that far from what many Black Americans have probably thought at some point in time. And comments that many Black Americans will not completely disagree with after hearing for the first time. Most Black people will probably agree to a certain extent with what the pastor said. I know I do.
These statements that Barack made summed up the pastor's remarks pretty well:
"They weren't simply a religious leader's effort to speak out against perceived injustice. Instead, they expressed a profoundly distorted view of this country – a view that sees white racism as endemic, and that elevates what is wrong with America above all that we know is right with America; a view that sees the conflicts in the Middle East as rooted primarily in the actions of stalwart allies like Israel, instead of emanating from the perverse and hateful ideologies of radical Islam....Like other predominantly black churches across the country, Trinity embodies the black community in its entirety – the doctor and the welfare mom, the model student and the former gang-banger. Like other black churches, Trinity's services are full of raucous laughter and sometimes bawdy humor. They are full of dancing, clapping, screaming and shouting that may seem jarring to the untrained ear. The church contains in full the kindness and cruelty, the fierce intelligence and the shocking ignorance, the struggles and successes, the love and yes, the bitterness and bias that make up the black experience in America."
Barack is in a position I don't envy with regard to handling racial issues that will inevitably come up during this process. And to see how he handled this situation is almost a cause for concern in my mind because he is obviously playing things safe. I don't see anything wrong if that's just a position he will take until he wins the presidency. He may very well need to cater to all those who will/might vote for him until he wins the big ticket. You have to play the game to be in a position to take the big shot. But if he takes this "play it safe" and "straddle the fence" mentality into his tenure, I think it may turn out to be the most colossal waste of an opportunity any Black person has ever had to affect large-scale change not only for the United States as a whole, but also Blacks.
Again, what do you think?
Shot out to Honorable for being the first blog I've seen to post the video of Barack's speech.
UPDATE: 40 Diesel gives an interesting perspective on Jeremiah Wright's role in all this over at dallaspenn.com
UPDATE: Bol seems to agree with some of my sentiments. Albeit, much more harshly.
6 comments:
Stop acting like these comments have not been said before. If Republicans can embrace these men, why can't Obama embrace Rev. Wright. I forgot your suppose to do as I say not as I do.
Falwell:
Said U.S deserved to be attacked on 9/11 ( Pat Robertson’s 700 telecast Sept 13, 2001)
Comment: I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way -- all of them who have tried to secularize America -- I point the finger in their face and say "you helped this happen."
In 1999 he stated the Antichrist is probably a Jewish man.
Hagee:
Called the Catholic Church a cult and the “great whore”, stated that "Hurricane Katrina was, in fact, the judgment of God against the city of New Orleans " for planning "a homosexual parade there on the Monday that the Katrina came,"
Stated in his book: "Homosexuality means the death of society because homosexuals can recruit, but they cannot reproduce."
Stated: The military will have difficultly recruiting healthy and strong heterosexuals for combat purposes. Why? Fighting in combat with a man in your fox hole that has AIDS or is HIV positive is double jeopardy'
In July 2006 in his church bulletin the cluster the following was said and written: To help students seeking odd jobs, his church newsletter, The Cluster, advertised a "slave" sale. "Slavery in America is returning to Cornerstone," it said. "Make plans to come and go home with a slave." Mr. Hagee apologized but, in a radio interview, protested about pressure to be "politically correct" and joked that perhaps his pet dog should be called a "canine American."
In What Every Man Wants in a Woman, Hagee wrote (Page 14): Do you know the difference between a woman with PMS and a snarling Doberman pinscher? The answer is lipstick. Do you know the difference between a terrorist and a woman with PMS? You can negotiate with a terrorist.
Parsley:
Wrote the following; "America was founded, in part, with the intention of seeing this false religion [of Islam] destroyed."
Hey...thanks for shouting out our blog. Anyway...you think he was playing it safe/straddling the fence with that speech? I couldn't disagree more. I think he was incredibly bold in a situation where his presidential bid is on the line. To so frankly speak about the ugly history of racism and oppression in this country when the entire world is watching was a courageous thing to do.
However, I think he was especially brilliant in acknowledging that maybe, just maybe, white folks have some degree of legitimacy for their feelings of anger and resentment. Being White automatically gives you a leg up over a Black person; however even that leg up doesn't seem like much to a person making 9 bucks an hour trying to take care of their family. So in that regard, his point was valid and something most Black folks don't really consider.
I think what people should take away from the speech and what he was trying to get at is that there shouldn't be a "white side" or "black side" to the race argument, because nobody has clean hands in the situation. The fact is...we are all getting screwed by the way things are being ran in Washington and none of us can change this country without the other. Democrats won't be elected without Black folks, and Black candidates can't be elected without white folks.
No prob on the shot-out.
I think he did a great job addressing some of the issues people are scared to talk about.
But I also think he was trying to appease all of his support base. The whites and the blacks.
"I think he was especially brilliant in acknowledging that maybe, just maybe, white folks have some degree of legitimacy for their feelings of anger and resentment."
Brilliant in this sense...I think this was a brilliant move to thwart the potential damage his pastor's comments can cause. He had to make sure that people didn't think he has the same thoughts but at the same time let Blacks know that he still "feels our pain". Politically, I don't think addressing the race issue really helps him at all because it's just going to draw more attention to the fact that he is Black and lots of people will be afraid of that face no matter how articulate he is, how great his speeches are, or how much he can motivate people of all colors. To some, he will always just be another you-know-what. And I believe that this group does include some Democrats as well.
I think it was great in that it will spark discussions among many different people and hopefully start breaking down barriers, but I do not think that is the reason why he made the speech necessarily.
At this point I think he is intelligent enough to know that he can't let anything foil his effort to win the nomination and he had to make sure he did some damage control. It was a fantastic speech and he made some very very good points, but in the end I think it was just damage control.
"we are all getting screwed by the way things are being ran in Washington and none of us can change this country without the other."
I agree with this statement wholeheartedly and I hope that everyone that supports him really understands what that means. Because I don't know that a lot of people aren't just caught up in the Obama craze rather than actually being a part of a movement that can make this country better. For example...
Barack's speech was aimed at the lower-middle class white people, the "Reagen Democrats," who for years have harbored resentment toward Blacks. But as for there being any validity to that resentment I disagree.
White people who are struggling to get a job may be angry, but the amount of poor and oppressed people continues to be ourtrageously disproportionate when compared to the entire population. If White people are angry because they are not getting paid enough they should blame Capitalism NOT Affirmative Action. In a capitalist society there are always going to be some poor people - fortunately the democratic party's economic policy is aimed at alleviating that, but in no way are black people responsible for these feelings of resentment. The idea that black people are taking the spots of deserving white people is inherently racist in itself.
I also do not think Black people have anything to apologize for in terms of being prejudice or as some like to call "reverse racism." Black people have never oppressed a group of people and therefore are not racist in the sense the word is used. The sentiment that the government(run by a majority of white people) continues to oppress the black community is wholly legitimate -- esp when 1 in 9 black men are in prison, when the general population has an incarceration rate of 1 in 100, among other things...
Overall, I think unity is something our nation should strive for, but I think at the current point regarding the reverend's concerns as ignorant and distorted views of reality was not brilliant in the sense of what is warranted to resolve the issues of oppression that continue to linger (being angry at the acts of our oppressor is not in any way denigrating our "great" nation -- it is pointing out that there have been wrongs done that need to be addressed). I think Barack's message that Black people should apologize for this white resentment and that both sides are to blame is more a message of trying to alleviate the white individuals who fear Black Nationalism. Which in my humble opinion is necessary at the current moment to uplift a people who have been walked on for much too long...
I clicked the link to Bol's article and I just shook my head. Maybe that demographic of losers who waste away in their momma's basements feel the way that he does, but all he did was become guilty of the very thing he accused Rev. Wright of doing. This is so reminiscent of that speech Chris Rock made about the difference between niggas and black folks. Guess which group he falls under? A comment from a soldier on Bol's post said it best. It's so easy for black folks to puff up and get all self-righteous about racism in this country, but we been doing that. And you know what, it doesn't work. The only thing that happens is other races look at us, shake their heads and say, "why don't they just get over it." The genius behind Obama's speech is that he was appeasing but honest. He disowned the comments without disowning the man because quite frankly that's what "whitey" expects. Racists expect black people, correction - nigg*rs to disown each other and keep the GREAT DIVIDE alive! The fact is Obama gets "it" better than most. Bol needs to walk up those steps, and go outside, because blog and all, he is doing exactly what they would expect a nigg*r to do.
"The genius behind Obama's speech is that he was appeasing but honest. He disowned the comments without disowning the man because quite frankly that's what 'whitey' expects."
Good points. I had not thought about it from that perspective until you mentioned it. That perspective, I like. Thank you for pointing that out.
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