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-------------------------
Wayne Besen
PO Box 25491
Brooklyn, NY 11202
It had been a devastating week for Barack Obama. The rationale for his entire campaign was hope and reconciliation. Yet, for days, his former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright, was shown on television delivering rabid and racially insensitive sermons denouncing America. Rightfully sensing his candidacy may be history if he did not respond, Obama answered with a spine-tingling, tear-evoking historical speech that was so remarkable, it drew comparisons to addresses made by Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy.
It was visionary, daring, and bold - evoking a flood of praise and the showering of lofty "M-words."
Indeed, it was so inspiring that Obama supplanted Oprah as the "Big O" on his campaign. The speech was as timeless as it was timely and will be talked about for generations. In essence, Obama brilliantly gave people - of all races - permission to justify their grievances and grudges - while taking them by the hand and showing them an enlightened way forward.
He also deftly handled the ranting reverend problem with a strategy of distancing without disowning. In doing so, Obama was credited for showing the two were not ideological Siamese twins, while scoring points for personal loyalty. It was a feat so astonishing that the only other politician who could have pulled it off - maybe - was Bill Clinton in his prime.
The address was also politically astute.
For example, Obama reassured Jewish voters concerned with Rev. Wright's comments by saying that, Israel was a "stalwart" ally and the problems in the Middle East emanated from, "the perverse and hateful ideologies of radical Islam."
When he said that Rev. Wright, "helped introduce me to my Christian faith," Obama was trenchantly using the example as an opportunity to tell voters - yet, again - that he was not a Muslim, as right wing opponents have repeatedly suggested.
Obama also boosted his candidacy by hitting patriotic themes - such as when he said, "In no other country on earth is my story even possible." He referred to the "decency and generosity of the American people," and said his convictions were rooted in "faith in God and my faith in the American people."
Perhaps most clever, was the way Obama forthrightly explained his connection and affection for Rev. Wright by comparing him to an old uncle and using the phrase, "For the men and women of Reverend Wright's generation." Clearly, Wright was a substitute for John McCain and the message was clear: McCain is stuck in the past and Obama represents the voice of a new generation that wants to move beyond yesterday’s sins."
All politicians - even Obama - need bogeymen, real or imagined. Brilliantly, Obama joined people of all races together in the fight against the "real culprits of the middle class squeeze - corporate culture rife with inside dealing, questionable accounting practices, and short-term greed; a Washington dominated by special interests economic policies that favor the few over the many."
This speech was particularly tantalizing for gay and lesbian people because if a president wants to pass pro-gay legislation, he or she will have to effectively articulate why it is a moral imperative. This speech allowed us to envision President Obama assuaging Christian conservatives by telling them that their work to protect families is honest and sincere. However, their attempts to use discrimination as a tool to strengthen traditional families are harmful and misguided. By forthrightly addressing an explosive issue, such as race, it was a guide to how Obama might build support for GLBT issues.
While Obama did not solve the racial divide in America or the problem of his long association with Rev. Wright in one speech, he did a better job than anyone else could have under the circumstances. One can't help but marvel at the skills of this political Houdini, who turned a crisis into a crowning achievement. It is too soon to plaster his face on Mt. Rushmore, but this performance guarantees more people will rush to Obama's revived campaign.
19 Comments:
I'm glad you saw this Wayne. This is the first time I have ever heard a politician discuss race in America in a direct and comprehensive way. This is the conversation we have all been needing to have for a long, long time. This is probably the most important speech of the decade, maybe longer.
But we all need to do our part to maintain this level of conversation, both in front of polite company, and when we're in private, around the kitchen table, or the barber shop or the church (to borrow from the speech of course).
posted by Anonymous, at
3/19/2008 12:46 PM
It was a great speech which appealed to our better side. This, unlike the current occupant of the White House who has spent over seven years dividing us and bringing this country into strife. What a difference! Senator Obama seems to be a true leader, and Hillary Clinton simply can't hold a candle to him.
posted by Anonymous, at
3/19/2008 12:56 PM
True, he is a wonderful speaker, reminding us of a younger Bill - but I think this country is way more prepared to hear a topic like race be discussed out in the open than LGBT issues. I mean, what we gays are going through, blacks were going through something similar 40 years ago (but MUCH more blatantly - we don't have signposts that say 'heterosexual only') - so it only took 40 years for people to discuss this topic openly as Obama did. Now all we need to do is wait until I'm retired to hear someone discuss LGBT issues openly and head-on.
Call me a cynic - because I AM a cynic - but I'll take my victories at face value. I don't like counting "what-if's" and "if only's" as victories. Does this negate Obama's wonderful speech? No way. I'm still planning to vote for him in the PA primary. And I hope he gets the Oval Office.
posted by Emily K, at
3/19/2008 2:24 PM
Sent to SF Chronicle today:
Editor:
Sen. Obama's speech regarding his former pastor and the legacy of racism in America was nothing short of inspiring. At last, we have someone who is willing to talk like an adult to us on these subjects, done neither in some whitewashed nor black-faced version of race relations and history.
Race is an in-human invention used to elevate one group at the expense of another. Like all bigotry, it is the means by which many can avoid employing fact and reason, circumventing the moral obligation to judge by what lies within instead of persecuting others for surface issues, and dehumanizing others while ignoring our own sins.
That being said, it would be fantastic if we could have a similar speech from a major presidential candidate on the subject of the place of gay people in our society, homophobia, and the price we all pay for it. Perhaps we could hear Sen. Obama telling conservatives that though their work to strengthen families is honest and sincere, using lies, hatred, and bigotry towards gay people, masked as 'moral disapproval', is both counter-productive and a moral outrage.
posted by Anonymous, at
3/19/2008 2:57 PM
Barak is the exact opposite of bush and his minions from hell. He's just what we need to clean up the toxic waste dump that Washington has become.
posted by Anonymous, at
3/19/2008 3:50 PM
Obama may have a great speech writer but I still cannot get past the idea of sitting in a church for 20 some years and this never becoming an issue with this man. It's like a christian who is not gay and is sitting in a church whilst the pastor makes anti-gay remarks and doing so for twenty years and then saying - Yeah - but those aren't my views. Well then damnit - get up, walk out, make a statment and go to another church. This explanation after the fact of a twenty year courtship is nothing short of a lie. No matter what dressing you use to make it taste better.
posted by Anonymous, at
3/19/2008 4:31 PM
Anonymous,
Sorry to break it to you but Obama wrote the speech 100% himself. He didn't even show it to advisors until the last minute.
This is being reported by all of the networks.
Sorry you missed it.
It's one thing when people write Obama off as "all show", a "great orator" or "really good at delivering a speech", but it's another thing entirely when that man writes the speech entirely on his own. How many politicians, past or present are able to do that; especially under the pressure cooker circumstances that he found himself in. That shows his depth and wisdom and shows that he is much more than a good showman as many of his detractors continually claim. It also shows a man who performs extremely well while under relentless attack and while under immense pressure.
I think he quieted a number of people's concerns about whether or not he was capable and prepared to be President.
His enemies (from both Parties) were salivating over his quick demise two days ago but in 45 minutes their mouths went dry as they watched him almost miraculously turn a seemingly insurmountable crisis into a moment of learning and healing.
THAT is what America needs right now more than anything else. A Healer and a uniter.
posted by Anonymous, at
3/20/2008 4:44 AM
Well - so he wrote the speech. That even scarier. Why didn't he he write that in a letter to his pastor?
posted by Anonymous, at
3/20/2008 2:25 PM
I do have mixed feelings about the idea of Barack sitting in church and not doing something about his pastor's more controversial remarks. But in the end it's not the same as doing nothing while a preacher condemns gay people.
As incendiary as they may be, White's remarks about America also appear to be coming from a passionate, if jaded, belief in social justice. His anger stems from real hatred and discrimination he and other blacks have suffered in their lifetimes, and the historical racism that led up to it.
If I had been a black man growing up when he did, I might hate white people and America too.
But that still isn't the same as a preacher making anti-gay remarks. Most homophobes don't have valid historical reasons for their beliefs, most of them aren't personally affected by gay issues at all - they are just ignorant bullies picking on a group of people they probably know nothing about.
The correct analogy would be a queer pastor who has lived a lifetime of abuse, getting up in front of his church and making angry remarks about straight America.
And in that case, I would understand exactly where he was coming from, even if I didn't agree with everything he was saying or how he said it.
posted by Anonymous, at
3/20/2008 7:08 PM
We have people like that Preacher in our own communities- and a lot of gay people like to shut them out but just hear them out. They're just saying what you agree with too they're just being more open and rowdy about it. Argue core issues, not personalities or presentations. Hating on somebody for being too forward is just as bad as hating on somebody for being timid and shy.
And it IS true with what they say. Without that kind of ass-kicking activism many gay people wouldn't even be alive today. You think their anger and rage is undeserved sometimes -- but it's really not.
I mean a guy can be campy and not be good at basketball yet still have Wayne's ideals and good heart and fundamental truths about humanity. I listen to Wayne cause he's such a good person. That he's a hot jock boy is just a small added benefit to me. =)
He just needed somebody to listen probably. So next time an angry gay gets in your face- just listen. Don't judge or condone or be patronizing to them. What good would it be if Obamba DID fight with him? Nothing. We need to be united. All minorities together is way stronger than the majority EVER will be.
posted by Anonymous, at
3/21/2008 6:44 AM
That's a good point. Too many people are dismissive of others' anger. I think people just want to conform and don't like making waves.
Sometimes it seems that all people care about is how loud and angry you sound, regardless of what the content is.
Like if I got up in a crowd and angrily shouted that everyone deserves equal rights, the crowd would just get pissed off and tell me to shut the fuck up.
But if I go on national TV and, with a dumb smile, softly and politely say that gay people are like rapists or child molestors, people are like "oh well, he sounds so calm and friendly" and have no problem with it.
I once got in an argument with a fundie who came to our campus with a huge "homosexuality is sin" banner (on a rainbow backdrop, no less). So I got pissed and told him to fuck off.
And he said "sir, you're the one getting upset", as if that made me wrong or something! WTF?!?
I was like "no shit I'm fucking upset! You're protesting me and my relationship, and I've done nothing to harm you, I've never even met you! What the fuck else would I feel?!?"
The problem is not with Wright. His robust contempt for American racists, including those who mistakenly brand that attitude as ‘black racism’, is an entirely healthy and appropriate response to the racism woven into the very fabric of US society. Wrights analysis of the origins of the horrific criminal attack by terrorists on 9-11 is also correct – it is directly tied to US support for the racist apartheid policies of zionists.
In the final analysis Obama is not all that different form Clinton and McCain. If the two of them are Bush Stout he is just as surely Bush Lite and we ignore that to our peril. Like Billary Clinton, he is a Democrat, a political hustler in a right centrist party who will say anything to get elected.
As Gore Vidal said says “We have one party - we have the party of essentially corporate America. It has two right wings, one called Democratic, one called Republican.”
A vote for the Democrats or Republicans is a vote for a party that gutted ENDA, dropped the hate crimes bill and refuses to repeal Billarys DOMA and DADT. They did that so the Republicans couldn’t claim they were GLBT friendly. Billary and Obama didn’t offer a hint of protest when all that was going on.
Like Clinton and McCain Obama openly, arrogantly and unashamedly panders to gay bashing christian bigots. However Obama’s gay basher bedfellows like Mary Mary, Donnie McClurkin and Bush’s ‘spirit’ advisor are chump change compared to Billarys. Her admirers include her Senatorial bible class littermates Santorum of Pennsylvania and Brownback of Kansas. Pat Robertson admires her ‘tacking to the right’ and Faux News owner Rupert Murdoch gave her a $100,000 ‘donation’ for services rendered.
Obama was the first presidential candidate to support the NAFTA Peru extension bill. The AFL-CIO, all Peruvian unions and most environmental and anti-poverty organizations oppose NAFTA which is crafted to cut wages, bust unions and is a rolling environmental disaster. Obama, Clinton and most Republicans support NAFTA and are telling lies when they say they do not. They have to if they want corporate money.
In spite of all his hype about the war one thing remains crystal clear, neither he, Clinton or the Republicans can or will end the war. A victory by the Iraqis will end it, just like the war in Vietnam was ended. Obama, in an especially witless policy statement said he would attack Pakistan, a nation with nuclear weapons. Obama and Clinton say they won’t end the war until 2013 at the earliest, and McCain of course want to fight for a century or two.
Like Clinton and McCain, Obama is a handpuppet for the HMO, pharmaceutical and insurance industries. Don’t get sick if one of them wins. The National Nurses Organizing Committee, AFL-CIO condemns Obama, saying “Obama has chosen to give more customers and more public funds to the for-profit insurance corporations. It’s an expensive gift and one that allows them to continue meddling in medical decision-making while raking in obscene blood-money profits.”
The problem is that if enough people are stupid and vote for him he might win. That would be as disastrous as when Clinton (DADT and DOMA) or Bush 2 won. With Democrats like these who needs Republicans. A Republican candidate is a loud-mouthed baboon in a people suit with a theocratic christian attached at the hip. A Democratic candidate is a Republican in drag.
I'm surprised that so many people in the GLBT blog/journal community are against the "ex-gay" movement, but will make an exception for Donnie "the gloves are off/if the gay community wants a war, they'll get a war" McClurkin.
posted by S., at
3/23/2008 5:29 AM
Oh really, and who the hell is even talking about McClurkin? This is about White and his relationship to Obama.
And I don't recall any gays making an "exception" for McClurkin. Every queer I know who heard of that story was hurt and angered by it, and still is. Last I checked Obama denounced McClurkin's beliefs, which is a lot more than I can say for McCain and his infinitely more bigoted endorsements.
Regarding White and his sermons that are supposedly so far-fetched and bigoted, let's compare his take on Katrina with that of one of McCain's endorsements, evangelical pastor John Hagee:
White: The tragedy of Katrina was due to a racist white-dominated government neglecting black neighborhoods for decades.
Hagee: God sent Katrina to punish the people of New Orleans for allowing gay pride parades.
Let's analyze this a bit:
White's view = Might offend white people, but then again it's not far off the mark. Black neighborhoods have been systematically neglected through redlining and other racist practices for decades. White himself lived through segregation, so it's no surprise he has bad feelings toward white America. I would too.
Hagee's view: BATSHIT CRAZY.
Hagee and McCain are the type of people we should all be directing our hostility toward. Who is holding them accountable? Why aren't Hagee's remarks being obsessed over and dissected by the media and everyone else?
(answer: because he's white...?)
posted by Anonymous, at
3/23/2008 1:42 PM
Hagee's remarks are no different than McClurkin's collection of anti-gay, violence-inciting comments over the years.
Obama may have denounced McClurkin's comments, but Donnie isn't the one running for president. If Obama really was serious, he would have called off the performance before it started.
If a Klansman was scheduled to speak at that event, you can bet Obama would have been on the phone, hollering for the curtain to be closed.
And for the record, none of the 3 current candidates has my vote, and no, I'm not a "swing voter" LOL Pro-gay/Pro-NRA Bill Richardson HAD my vote, but his Obama support has no effect on me.
posted by S., at
3/24/2008 12:11 PM
I'm extremely disappointed that Obama continues to ignore and avoid gay media outlets - most recently a Philly paper ran their interview with Hilary alongside a blank half page where Barach's interview would have gone. Hilary has certainly played dirty in recent days, but the anti-gay political ethos in this country is way too strong to risk a candidate that wants to play wild card with LGBT rights.
posted by Dr. Matthew, at
4/04/2008 10:01 PM
