Obama Talks Race, Sci-Fi Legend Dies
by Erin Kotecki Vest

CNN reports Senator Barack Obama in a speech Tuesday addressed the controversy surrounding his former minister, using it as an opportunity to challenge Americans to take a closer look at race relations.

Speaking at Philadelphia's National Constitution Center, the Democratic presidential candidate said he rejected racially charged comments made by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, but he tried to explain the root of those remarks.

"That anger is not always productive; indeed, all too often it distracts attention from solving real problems," he said. "But the anger is real; it is powerful; and to simply wish it away, to condemn it without understanding its roots, only serves to widen the chasm of misunderstanding that exists between the races."

BlogHer CE Catherine Morgan at the Political Voices of Women has posted the video of the speech.

Michelle Malkin, on the radio with John Gibson, discusses the speech:


Pam's House Blend says, "That said, people have to acknowledge part of the reason for the discomfort lies in Wright's delivery of the message. It's so black, isn't it? It sounds militant to tender ears outside the traditional black church. For that matter, it doesn't resemble the delivery of sermons in other denominations of black churches -- I was raised Episopalian, and those folks aren't the hooping and hollering types of congregations. That said, what does that all mean? If the same messages were delivered with a velvet glove, with less inflammatory language, would it generate the same reaction? I doubt it. But what does that mean in the bigger picture. I'm not sure. I think it requires more dialogue. Dialogue too many of us are afraid to engage in."

Frogs and Ravens writes, "I've been thinking about race lately.  Partly it's because when one teaches post-Civil War history, it's pretty hard to ignore.  Partly it's been in the context of the current political season, and the on-going question of whether racism or sexism is the bigger unsolved problem.  Certainly Obama's recent Speech offers powerful commentary on the experience of race in this country. Right now I am getting the most pleasure and having the most thoughts provoked by the site Stuff White People Like."

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Author Arthur C. Clarke, of "2001:A Space Odyssey" fame, has died at age 90. Clarke had been wheelchair-bound for several years with complications stemming from a youthful bout with polio and had suffered from back trouble recently, said representatives of the nonprofit Arthur C. Clarke Foundation.

Sharon Weinberger at the Wired Blog writes, "If ever there was a need for a good biography, it is about Clarke. Revered as both a futurist and science fiction writer, he is also credited with proposing geostationary communications satellites. The breadth of his work and mysterious private life would make for an intriguing story."

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Contributing Editor Erin Kotecki Vest also blogs at Queen of Spain Blog

Submitted by Erin Kotecki Vest (view blog) on Wed, 03/19/2008 - 01:13
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Comments

 

Great Post Erin...

Hi Erin...great post. What a crazy couple of days. Do you think this Obama stuff is going to go away now? Or has it only just begun? How bad do you think it hurts his campaign? Can he still win against McCain?

Oh, and thanks so much for linking to my site. You're the best. :-)

Contributing Editor Catherine Morgan
CatherineBlogs, The Political Voices of Women, Care2 Election Blog

Submitted by Catherine Morgan on Wed, 03/19/2008 - 00:41
 

Will it go away??

For anyone else, I would say no. But the way things have been going with the media and Obama, I wouldn't be surprised. I just have a hard time believing that Wright never said anything racially inflammatory before now and that Obama is shocked. Who we trust in our lives and who we look to for knowledge or guidance speaks volumes about us as people. I'm not sure I like what it says about Obama, even if it's just bad judgment in assessing those around him.

PunditMom
http://punditmom1.blogspot.com
Contributing Editor, Politics & News

Submitted by PunditMom on Wed, 03/19/2008 - 06:50
 

UCC statement on Jeremiah Wright: What kind
of prophet?

Here's a link to the full text. An excerpt here:

What's really going on here? First, it may state the obvious to point out that these television and radio shows have very little interest in Trinity Church or Jeremiah Wright. Those who sifted through hours of sermons searching for a few lurid phrases and those who have aired them repeatedly have only one intention. It is to wound a presidential candidate. In the process a congregation that does exceptional ministry and a pastor who has given his life to shape those ministries is caricatured and demonized. You don't have to be an Obama supporter to be alarmed at this. Will Clinton's United Methodist Church be next? Or McCain's Episcopal Church? Wouldn't we have been just as alarmed had it been Huckabee's Southern Baptist Church, or Romney's Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints?

Many of us would prefer to avoid the stark and startling language Pastor Wright used in these clips. But what was his real crime? He is condemned for using a mild "obscenity" in reference to the United States. This week we mark the fifth anniversary of the war in Iraq, a war conceived in deception and prosecuted in foolish arrogance. Nearly four thousand cherished Americans have been killed, countless more wounded, and tens of thousands of Iraqis slaughtered. Where is the real obscenity here? True patriotism requires a degree of self-criticism, even self-judgment that may not always be easy or genteel. Pastor Wright's judgment may be starker and more sweeping than many of us are prepared to accept. But is the soul of our nation served any better by the polite prayers and gentle admonitions that have gone without a real hearing for these five years while the dying and destruction continues?

I am debating trying not to think about this too much today. But I know I will lose. Perhaps I will manage to hold on to my tears.

Kim
BlogHer Contributing Editor|Professor Kim|

Submitted by Kim Pearson on Wed, 03/19/2008 - 08:43
 

Obama

While Obama has been projecting race issues onto his rivals from the beginning, it is obvious that race is Obama's cardinal issue. If Obama hasn't noticed before now that his long standing minister is an extremist, I wonder what else he hasn't noticed. If this is where Obama is, I don't think he will make a good President.

I want a President who is focused on the war, on the world's hot spots, the economy, healthcare, the American infrastructure, the corruption of Congress by lobbies, and all the the things that Bush has stood for.

America needs a President, not a spokesman for a cause. I don't want to hear Hillary talking about women's rights. I want a President who is ready to lead the country, and not a person with a cardinal issue.

Submitted by Janelynne on Wed, 03/19/2008 - 14:33
 

Presidential Issues

In this case, Obama was forced to address the race issue head-on. He is right, many black people are angry for better or worse, sometimes correctly and sometimes incorrectly because they've become jaded and prejudiced themselves, and white people in general don't see it and can be stunned to find it often because they don't have black friends to tell them about it. There does need to be dialogue although that's not the President's job.

Regarding Rev. Wright, you can love and respect a "family member" in general and yet not agree with everything they say or do. Wright should be considered a close personal friend of rather than a spokesperson for Obama. That said, those in the public eye need to be careful who they associate with if they want to win an election. That's just the way of the world.

Linda
http://www.moonbridgebooks.com
http://moonbridgeblog.blogspot.com

Submitted by leaustin on Wed, 03/19/2008 - 22:10