March 19th, 2008
A More Perfect Union, The Speech!
What a day yesterday was! It has to potential to become a historic day in our history or it could end up as just a nice speech. According to white journalist, there was a lot riding on Obama’s speech. I often watch early morning news cast on CNBC. Most of the journalists are white and many of the few blacks are hand picked and safe Negros. One pundit whom I respect said Obama would have difficulty addressing this issue. This pundit of politics stated, if Obama did not hit a home run speech, he needed to get out of the race. Senator Obama leads in popular votes, delegates, and states won, but if this speech could not be delivered to the satisfaction of white folks, he should step down. This was one of the more open minded commentators, and he still drew a line in the sand. Senator Clinton had a major speech on Iraq, the basis of her recent proclamation that she is best suited to answer a phone at 3 am. She has the experience and knowledge to be our best choice as Commander and Chief. There was no line in the sand for her even though she is loosing by all measurements, except skin color. Have you heard anything about Clinton’s speech, me either, it must have bombed.
Barrack hit a grand slam. At the end of his speech, I text a messaged to one of Senator Obama’s co chair of the national campaign. I text this super delegate, “A speech for the age of change. 5th graders need to memorize this speech instead of Gettysburg.” The reply was, they need to motorize both.
I will not get into the high points of his speech or the conservative spin on why Rev. Wright should be shot, and why Barack must be a hate monger. I will simply state, of all the people involved in this discussion, Hillary, Bill, Limbaugh, other conservatives, newspaper owners, Rev. Wright and Senator Obama, clearly Obama’s speech is from the heart and is sincere. The rest, are spinning according to their personal interest and how they want to race to turn out.
Will this speech help to elect our President? This speech as been described as the most important speech on civil rights since the “I have a Dream Speech,” 40 years ago. Will it move our nation closer and help us conquer problems. It depends on who you listen to. My advice is listening to Senator Obama.
This racial divide is a terrible thing. My life experiences have taught me; if you take the time to learn a person, regardless of your and their fears and resentment based on color, you can find trust and respect. I have seen that fact work in business and sociality.
March 19th, 2008 at 3:12 pm
Good analysis JD.
I’d hoped against hope, as I’m quite cynical that white folks will at any time in the near future be honest brokers when it comes to race; but I hoped they might heed Obama’s words and take advantage of this opportunity to deal properly with race for once.
Many of them have instead pissed on it. Now I’m pissed!
I’ll have commentary on that tonight or tomorrow morning, in a post I’ve already written but just haven’t put up yet.
March 19th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Yobachi, I will look forward to your insight tonight. I had hoped as well, if Barack is too black, then if not him who, if not now when. They are trying to place Barack as a revolutionary. Thanks for the comment
March 19th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
Obama is definitely a fine orator. The problem is that the Press never publishes a speech (they used to). Now they just publish sound bites. Listening to sound bites is as bad as not listening at all.
Re: Obama and Wright, I honestly couldn’t give a hoot. I know people that are racist. I don’t publicly ‘disown’ them or tear them down. I wouldn’t stand up in public and disown them, either. They have their beliefs and I have mine.
You don’t get people to change by punching them in the face.
Wright is a grown man who’s got many more years on Obama. In those years, I’m sure he suffered much more racism than Obama has. As a result, I have empathy with his anger. I don’t agree with what he says, I don’t like what he says, I don’t believe what he says… but I empathize with what he says.
In fact, I’m confident that if I ever had the opportunity to meet Rev. Wright, I’m sure we could have a positive conversation. We do have one thing in common, a belief in Christ.
PS: I still like to think of myself as Conservative. Please don’t put us in the same bucket as the radical right, Bill, Hillary and Rush!
March 20th, 2008 at 12:17 pm
Doug, Rev. Wright is one of our nations most esteemed church leaders.He loves our country as do I. Having said that, I agree with his words, although I do not condone a minister cussing in church.regarding conservative thinking, I am learning you are not part of a monolith, and it is possible for some conservatives to have a open mind.Thank you for your comment.
March 20th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
If Rev. Wright has your respect, JD, then he has mine. Together… one person at a time… we will change this country, JD.
March 20th, 2008 at 1:30 pm
Hi JD,
The evening before the speech, my husband and I agreed on one thing, MISTAKE! For all of Obama’s haters, asking a man of his caliber to speak to the nation is not going to give them their desired results.
For all of the enlightened people, black white or otherwise, we all heard the power, unity and resolve in that speech as the words flowed. And try as they may, as the days and weeks go by, even his haters are going to have to own up to the value of the speech.
I think that it was the best thing that could have happened to Obama. Ever since that speech he seems to be more confident, more deliberate, and much in charge and on the money.
This speech is going to have more than the desired results for those of us who support Obama, because some people are slow to hear. And unfortunately for the haters, there’s a lot of time in between that speech and the next primary.
March 20th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
Thanks Doug,he is not perfect but he is well respect within the United Church of Christ, which is a mostly white faith collection of churches through out the US.
March 20th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
Shelia, how are you? Thanks for the comment, Barack’s next speech will tie the war and the economy together, if he hits another homerun, happy days are here again!
March 24th, 2008 at 11:55 pm
My stomach turned in knots, as I listened to the talking heads in media mouth uninformed opinions about Dr. Wright, and the black Church.
Black oratory, or black preaching, has traditionally had elements of
exaggeration, both in style and content. And Church folk, Black Church Folk, know this, and understand.
(Blackness always has an element
of flourish or style. That’s why black athletes slam dunk, but the
inventor of basketball - Naismith - a white invented a simple layup.)
Taken in isolation, and heard from the perspective of uninformed
(ignorant) white journalists, black academicians, and the like; Dr.
Jeremiah Wrights comments may seem off base.
But in the context of traditional black preaching (and the historical
fact of black men intentinally infected with syphilus by the U.S. government as a science experiment); Dr. Wright’s comments are expressive of a continuing deep suspicion of our government and lingering resentment over past and present wrongs.
Informed black church folk got the message in the expression of the
words, as much or perhaps more so than the words themselves. Read the history of coded messages in the songs of African slaves.
Black oral communication is full of codes and symbolism that we take for
granted. We don’t even think about it until whites dare to comment on
and criticize that which they do not understand.
Mr. Obama revealed true dignity of Soul in refusing to leave his church and repudiate his Pastor. My admiration went up several notches.
March 27th, 2008 at 11:57 am
CWyatt, thanks for your compelling comment. Rev. Wright is a highly respected Minister and has lead a remarkable career. We are finding out this election may tarnish his reputation but he voice the truth and as time moves on his sound bites will be a source of less controversty.
March 29th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
Another example of how this flap white people are making about Dr. Wright has been taken out of context is this: We must consider who Dr. Wright was talking to in that speech.
He was to talking to Black men and women who mostly were members of his Church or some other Black Church. The point is Dr. Wright was talking to family.
That being true, it should remind all Americans; white, black, pink, and polka dot, of the things we say to one another (our families) behind closed doors at the dinner table, on the golf course, in car pools; when people who don’t look like us aren’t present.
The same talking heads (B. O’reilly, N. Gingrich, for example), now professing such indignation, are the same people, who when they’re not in their pundit suits are party to racial slurs and remarks, or utter them themselves.
Everybody in America knows how this plays out in families around the dinner table.
Will these same white hypocrites repudiate Uncle Harry because of his oft uttered use of the “n” word? Will they now demand that the family disown grandma when she loudly insists that blacks and other minorities are not as smart as whites?
When Don Imus let fall of his mouth the now famous “nappy headed hoes” remark, the only thing he was guilty of is being stupid enough to repeat things he has said and heard at the country club!
So, all these indignant, white, supposedly non-racists, particularly of the Christian persuasion, need to heed the words of that famous preacher who said, “He that is without sin cast the first stone.”
March 31st, 2008 at 5:06 pm
CWyatt, Thanks for commenting. What you spoke is the truth and yet the double standard continues. Rev. Wright has had a tremendously postive career.
April 11th, 2008 at 9:49 am
The Regard!
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