It's 2am. You need some sleep because tomorrow is a big day. But you can't go
to bed because the speech you have to deliver in the morning is a mess. The
pages are all over the floor, the text is too long and you've lost the
thread. There are too many people in the room and the suggestions they are
pitching are stupid. You need to cut, but you don't know what to cut. What's
gone wrong?
I'll tell you, because that's a room I've been in as a speechwriter. What's
gone wrong is that somewhere in the dim, now forgotten, past (about 36 hours
ago in a fast-moving campaign) you failed to ask the key questions - What is
this speech really about? Why am I making it? On Monday night, the night
before he delivered one of the biggest speeches of his career, Barack Obama
was also up until 2am. But the phrase his staff used to describe the work he
was doing in the wee hours is revealing. He was, as they describe it,
“tweaking away”. That's all the speech needed by that point. Because Obama
knew exactly what he wanted to say. He knew precisely why he was delivering
this speech.
He needed to address the remarks of the Rev Jeremiah Wright, and he needed to
do it soon, before his campaign took on any more water. Obama's strategy for
dealing with his race identity is the most important pillar of his entire
campaign. And Wright was threatening it.
Shelby Steele, the African-American author, describes blacks in the US as
employing two different strategies. The first is bargaining - accepting
white innocence as a given and receiving in return both an earnest effort to
prove that acceptance right, and gratitude for the stance. The second is
challenging - treating white attitudes with suspicion and directing
righteous anger at them for the many horrible transgressions of America's
recent past. Challengers get acquiesence, but are feared, not loved.
Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson are chall- engers. Oprah Winfrey, Bill Cosby,
Colin Powell, these are bargainers. And Obama too, of course. He's a classic
bargainer.
Then scandal arrived. The incendiary words of Obama's own pastor, the leader
of the church community he had attended for 20-odd years, became public.
“God Damn America,” YouTube audiences saw Wright declaim. “God Damn America”
on constant loop on the TV news. Had the candidate worshipped with this man
for years? Obama had no choice. He had to reaffirm his status as a
bargainer. He had to respond.
Hence his speech. And what made it politically difficult, what made it a
backfoot move, what made it an attempt to rescue a campaign from trouble,
also made it a great speech, an important speech, a moment of high emotion
and political significance. That's the way with these things. You can't make
a great oration to a local supper club on a wet Thursday. It's in the dock
or on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial or at times of great tension and
controversy you make great speeches. Because you know what the speech is
about. Because you know why you are making it. It matters.
And so, in the wonderful language he uses, but sometimes deploys to say
little, Obama calmly and directly addresses race. He talks of his
disagreement with Wright but also of his love for him. He says that Wright's
anger is understandable but he disagrees with the pastor's idea - the
challenger's contention - that America can't change.
And then in a fantastic section he sweeps past race and says that it is a
distraction. What should America do? “At this moment, in this election, we
can come together and say ‘Not this time'.”
I don't think this speech will disappear. It will endure. Like John Kennedy's
speech addressing his Catholicism, or Lyndon Johnson's addressing civil
rights, this speech will live. It will make the history books, in the
chapter addressing the first serious presidential run by an
African-American. Why? Not because it is necessarily a turning point itself,
but because it will stand as the best expression of the idea that made
Obama's candidacy possible, that made it viable. It will stand as a symbol
of what he needed to do to make his campaign work.
Did Obama write all this himself? His officials say that he did. But they
always say that. There's talk of him dictating the first draft to his
speechwriter Jon Favreau and the closing section, no question about it, was
a long story Obama has used before. The central idea, though? Definitely
Obama's. For nothing is more personal to him than his strategy for dealing
with his racial identity.
And by it his candidacy will live or die.
A PRESIDENTIAL PERFORMANCE
There's astonishingly little of the actor about Barack Obama, and that's meant
as a compliment. He doesn't soar or reach for rhetorical climaxes.
He doesn't twist his audiences' heartstrings even when he's talking of matters
close to his heart. When he speaks of his wife or his “precious daughters”,
there's no throb in his voice. And does this make him bland or dull? Quite
the opposite.
Somehow he has mastered the art of conveying feeling, strong feeling, without
seeming emotionally manipulative. He stands there in his sober suit. His
voice is firm, his body-language surprisingly still. He makes few, if any,
movements with his hands or arms. In terms of delivery, he's as far from the
Rev Jeremiah Wright, the old preacher he manages to berate without
disowning, as it is possible to be. And all this combines to reinforce his
basic message: I have a black face, but I am capable of representing the
nation in all its diversity.
Indeed, you might almost say that he's leadership incarnate. Never, even for a
moment, does Obama lose a sense of quiet power and effortless authority. He
radiates dignity and decency. Myself, I didn't see all his speech, but I saw
him tackle difficult subjects: Rev Wright, the “stain” of slavery, Israel
and “the perverse and hateful ideology of radical Islam”, the supposedly
“wild and wide-eyed liberals” who mistake his candidacy for a form of
affirmative action, the exit polls that suggest he might be a polarising
force and, of course, his own ethnic origins.
Throughout, he struck me as infinitely credible and, indeed, presidential.
Remember Tony Blair's embarrassingly actorly reading of the lesson at Diana's
funeral? Now imagine him in Obama's situation. The smile, the voice, the
undulations of the body would be ingratiating. He would be saying, as ham
actors often implicitly do: love me. Have you seen a replay of Richard
Nixon's Checkers speech? Imagine how he would have dealt with the passage in
which Obama talks of his multi-hued family, starting with the grandparents
who gave their all to the Second World War. Then call up YouTube and look at
Obama in Philadelphia.
Somehow his serious and sober charisma leaves you feeling that, not only is he
the man to heal the divisions left from America's very beginnings, but that
he has the assurance, the intelligence, the stature to deal with such
matters as terrorism, global warming, a faltering economy. As as unactorly
actor he gets five stars from me. As a president - well, perhaps the world
will see.
BENEDICT NIGHTINGALE
THE ISSUE THAT WON'T GO AWAY
Was the speech a turning point? No. Will the issue of the Rev Jeremiah Wright
and his views on race be a burden to Barack Obama all the way to election
day? Yes.
The Illinois senator demonstrated yet again his eloquence in his address in
Philadelphia on Tuesday. The fundamental question about his candidacy,
however, is whether a man who would be the least experienced president of
the United States since Jimmy Carter has the judgment to serve in the Oval
Office. That is the doubt that Hillary Clinton exploited in the Ohio and
Texas primariesand it is the theme that SenatorJohn McCain will hammer home
if Obama is his opponent for the White House.
So Obama cannot win if race is a predominant issue in this election. Wright
was a special embarrassment because he had been so close to the Obama family
and what he said had been captured by television and could be replayed
endlessly to a less than impressed white audience. This speech was a smart
attempt to place distance between candidate and mentor while not denouncing
the man who married the senator and his wife and baptised his children. Yet
what Wright articulated has been expressed by thousands of black pastors
across the US. Is Obama going to repudiate all of them? Will he be believed
if he does?
It has long been clear that the senator can be the first black president only
if he is not seen as a black candidate. Bill Clinton understood this better
than anyone when, in the aftermath of the senator thrashing his wife in the
South Carolina primary, he noted that Jesse Jackson had performed very well
in that state in his 1984 and 1988 bids for the presidency.
Obama has to be above race, not enmeshed in it. His implicit argument that by
electing him Americans would somehow have cleansed themselves of past
distrust will not wash. That is why the chances are that this is not the
last time that the senator will find himself having to confront the matter
of race in this election.
The Democratic Party establishment is privately deeply worried about this
election. This is a year when it should be relatively easy for them to
reclaim the Oval Office, yet there are nagging doubts about whether Obama,
if nominated, could carry states such as Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio
and Pennsylvania, which will determine the outcome of this battle. Obama's
words will undoubtedly impress those who take the trouble to listen to him.
Whether they will work with those who are watching rather than listening is
far more debatable.
TIM HAMES
The United States by race
White 73.9 per cent
Black or African American 12.4 per cent
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.8 per cent
Asian 4.4 per cent
Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander 0.14 per cent
Hispanic or Latino origin 14.8 per cent
Other race 6.3 per cent
Two or more races 2.0 per cent
Source: US Census Bureau, 2006 (figures add up to more than 100 per cent
because Hispanic is classified as origin, not race)
An edited extract from Barack Obama's speech
“We the people, in order to form a more perfect union.” Two hundred and
twenty-one years ago, in a hall that still stands across the street, a group
of men gathered and, with these simple words, launched America's improbable
experiment in democracy... And yet words on a parchment would not be enough
to deliver slaves from bondage, or provide men and women of every colour and
creed their full rights and obligations as citizens of the United States.
What would be needed were Americans in successive generations who were
willing to do their part - through protests and struggle, on the streets and
in the courts, through a civil war and civil disobedience and always at
great risk - to narrow that gap... This was one of the tasks we set forth at
the beginning of this campaign - to continue the long march of those who
came before us.
Reverend Wright is a man who helped introduce me to my Christian faith, a man
who spoke to me about our obligations to love one another; to care for the
sick and lift up the poor. He is a man who served his country as a US
Marine; who has studied and lectured at some of the finest universities and
seminaries in the country, and who for over 30 years led a church that
serves the community by doing God's work here on Earth...
I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community. I can no more
disown him than I can my white grandmother - a woman who helped raise me, a
woman who sacrificed again and again for me, a woman who loves me as much as
she loves anything in this world, but a woman who once confessed her fear of
black men who passed by her on the street, and who on more than one occasion
has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe. These people
are a part of me. And they are a part of America, this country that I love.
Some will see this as an attempt to justify or excuse comments that are simply
inexcusable. I can assure you it is not... Reverend Wright and other
African-Americans of his generation... came of age in the late Fifties and
early Sixties, a time when segregation was still the law of the land and
opportunity was systematically constricted...The memories of humiliation and
doubt and fear have not gone away; nor has the anger and the bitterness of
those years. That anger [finds voice] in the barbershop or around the
kitchen table, in the church on Sunday morning, in the pulpit and in the
pews...
A similar anger exists within segments of the white community. Most working
and middle-class white Americans don't feel that they have been particularly
privileged by their race. Their experience is the immigrant experience - no
one's handed them anything, they've built it from scratch... So when they
are told to bus their children to a school across town; when they hear that
an African-American is getting an advantage in landing a good job, or a spot
in a good college because of an injustice that they themselves never
committedresentment buildsover time...
This is where we are right now. It's a racial stalemate we've been stuck in
for years... I have never been so naive as to believe that we can get beyond
our racial divisions in a single election cycle, or with a single candidacy
- particularly a candidacy as imperfect as my own.
But I have asserted a firm conviction - a conviction rooted in my faith in God
and my faith in the American people - that working together we can move
beyond some old racial wounds, and that we have no choice if we are to
continue on the path of a more perfect union.
Why can't a paper like yours print all of Rev. Wright's speech? This man unlike Clarence Thomas is really the victim of an "electronic lynching" The man started with the history of genocide against our Native American population first under the Crown, and then under our U.S. government, which broke EVERY treaty it signed with the Indians! He progressed from that to Katrina in which the poor black population were turned into refugees in their own country. A city where the federal government colluded with their big donor developers into not allowing people back into their public housing, which they are now going to destroy. He quoted from an American ambassador with the "do unto others" quote. The US press has consistently injected race into this election in their efforts to divide the working poor white and black. This is a historical given in this country, and is played out as I write. Obama is to principaled for this country. I hope Europe can stand living through CliMcCAin!!
Marty Price, Oakland, California
"Race For The White House"
"Times writers on Obama's race speech"
Anybody spot the pun? I had just figured it now. lol
jayil, london, uk
Obama IS the ideal candidate - actually probably too good for America. Instead we will probably end up with McCain, a good man but too much a part of the establishment and hell bent on focusing on a war being waged in the wrong place. Or, probably worse yet, Hilary Clinton and clan, a part of the past that reeks of special interests and one scandal after another. Obama is being shot down by his own honesty and integrity- By refusing to throw an old friend under the bus and by speaking honestly about race - an issue that America is too ignorant to deal with in an unbiased way. The whole thing is sickening. But we will in the end get what we deserve - an America that is split and ineffective. .
Nancy, Alexdandria , VA
Imo, Obama is the ideal U.S Prez. However, there is no way the people who really control America (the power elite) will have a black U.S president. No way hosey!
jayil, london, uk
There is absolutely no evidence that he or his two young daughters sat in church and listened to racist hatred. If you don't like him, fine - but don't embellish. I think his explanation was a heart felt one. I just wonder how many news people or Hillary supporters it took to dig through years of sermons to find the one they are showing over and over. If you dig long enough or deep enough you will find dirt somewhere. A church I belonged to had a youth minister who took liberties with a young person. Big news then - I didn't quite the church either.
Joy, Stafford, Virginia
let's have an equally open GENDER debate.
Hillary's gender is like the elephant in the room that noone talks about.
gender is more secretly persuasive.
do you like older women telling you what to do?
yes if they are as educated, experienced and dynamic as hillary!
we in the UK care who will be the next leader of the free world: a mature statesperson or a young demagogue.
M.A. Oxford University
Susan, London, England
Americans will not vote for a man who allowed his 2 young daughters to sit and listen to such racist hatred in church for so many years. Obama showed poor judgement in doing so, and his "judgement" was what he claimed was his best asset.
Sadly, because I liked him , I do not believe he is electable any more.
And that's not about race. That's about JUDGEMENT.
Mary, Spring, Texas
I'm always amazed at these posts. This story has been played and played to discredit Obama. He has handled it exceedingly well. Like a true leader, he has acknowledged the problem and faced it head on. No, "I did not have sex with that woman" here." Nene, you say he is green. I say the leadership skills he displays are not once you get by osmosis - you are a real leader or not. Unfortunately, Hillary is not...she is ambitious beyond belief but I am very concerned how she will play around the world. I don't see her arrogant and sometimes abrasive manner impressing many. Obama knows how to talk to and inspire people. His positive attitude is what we need right now with the economy and world situation. It is obvious the right wing media wants McCain to run against Hillary. Because he will beat her - they are scared of Obama, thus all the attacks. This may be our only chance to get it right. Vote Obama '08
Nancy, Fredericksburg, VA
I'm not against Obama because he's black. I'm against him because he's green.
nene, Bloomingdale, NJ, USA
Tim Hames repeats Hillary Clinton's claim that 'The fundamental question about his [Obama's] candidacy... is whether a man who would be the least experienced president of the United States since Jimmy Carter has the judgment to serve in the Oval Office. "
In fact, Hillary was elected to the Senate in 2000. Should she be credited with executive experience for 8 years as 'First Lady'? Obama served in the Illinois Senate from 1997-2004, and became a U.S. Senator in 2004. As for "least experienced president", G.W. Bush was a Texas governor for 6 years (1994-2000). The Texas legislature meets only 140 days every two years, and Texas governors have very little executive authority. Quality of experience does matter! (I am a U.S. voter hoping for something far better with Obama.)
Carol, Burwash Common, UK
if john mccain had sat through 20 years of extremist hate speech he would be out on his ear. the fact obama is the most liberal of all his senate colleagues not any issue of his race will insure he will not be elected in what is still a conservative America.
Tim, st louie, mo usa
We all know that Obama does great speeches. The question really is, what does he do between them?
William McIlhagga, Ilkley,
Seems to me like another case of White America being scared by the (rightfully) angry Black man. Look at why Rev Wright holds these view, address it and move on. But holding Obama accountable for the beliefs of others of his colour is just churlish.
Martin, Manchester, UK
Shame on you guys.
Nkechi, London, England
Of course there will be people who will not vote for Senator Obama because of this issue. However, the people who truly believe in him, both white and black, will not let it impact their decision to vote for him in the upcoming primaries or national election. There are racists in every society, including European. As a white, female Democrat I would like to see a woman in the White House but will vote for OB without hesitation. Also it is very unfair for anyone to suggest that because a white individual does not vote for OB that makes he/she a racist. If I remember it was Europeans who introduced slavery into the New World, which is no excuse for its existence or longevity. We have come a long way and still have a long way to go. Also, reverse discrimination does exist here and I have encountered it first hand.
Stephanie, Baltimore, USA,
Karim speaks sense, however its disheartning to see such cynical opinions from British commenters as well.
Obama does not hope to reach an egalitarian state completely in office. Its impossible. But what should be understood is he isn't entirely concerned by this. Race was brought to the election by Clinton aides, and those that defend her are equally as sheepish as those who are apperently jumping on the Obama 'bus'.
The Bible says alot of things, but even rascist biggoted evangelicals which seem to dominate the blogging scene, don't follow it entirely. This is the case with the Wright, Obama incident. Its the opinions of evangelicals, jealous due to the failure of Huckabee, who preach that Obama's church is no more than a terrorist training camp, which unfortunately are having an influence on present polls, and I find it equally disgusting how dirt on Clinto is ignored, and stories of Obama are no more than conspiracy theories but get documented over five times as much.
Alex, Venus, Kent
I think Brack is a gift from god...........
Alan Parsons, London, United Kindom
Dear Jerry from Seattle: can you even SPELL hypocrite?
Pete Nichol, London,
Obama's actions reveal both that he is a racist and that he does not understand how he could possibly be one.
Scott, Houston, Texas, USA
I am very surpised to read the comments posted here regarding Obama's lack of experience, especially considering the US elected George Bush, a man with next to no experience, for 8 years after which the economy has been left in shambles, two wars are being waged, and America's image around the world has been tarnished. Obama has been honest and open about the state of race relations in the USA. He as asked for understanding and for people not to oversimplify how complicated this issue is. I was personally stunned at how well thought out and eloquent his speech was. I am not American, and can only view this election as an outsider, but Obama, more than any other candidate, has impressed me with how well he is able to take the constant attacks on his character and still maintain a dignified and strong image.
saba, toronto, canada
To Rakesh:
I agree with you that out of choice I would not attend inflammatory meetings and then have asides to the public about how I disagree with a statement or another or several.
However, I would urge you and others who see his attendance in this church and relationship with the pastor as a heinous crime against ethnic equality, to observe your relationships with those closest to you. Have you disowned all those with whom you had one disagreement with? What about two disagreements? What about three? Does one throw out the baby with the bathwater just becasue the bathwater is now soiled by the baby?
Relationships by definition are complex; and it's the impropriety of politics which forces relationships to be logical, rational and linear. This is a man trying to preserve the nuances and complexities of relationships, EVEN in politics.
Chi, Ithaca,
We have infer two things from this.
1. Obama is a good talker.
2. Obama is likely to behave very differently when he gets past the courtship stage. Someone who chose to spend twenty years in that toxic environment is probably not what America needs or can tolerate.
Patrick Henry, Bristol,
where did African American's get their religious views from? isn't it adopting the same god as your oppressor remarkably naieve? it's a shame that black Americans are so eager to follow divisive, power hungry men such as Wright, Sharpton, Jackson and others. This has always damaged cohesion and understanding, and fosters stupidity on both sides.
Had Senator Clinton attended any service where women were urged to remain bitter and angry over millennia of oppression and violence, she would be out of the race faster than you could say “why does racism always get precedence over sexism?â€.
Rick, Durham, UK
If he's not a Muslim then he must be a bad Christian ! And of course he is Black.............and he's father was a foreigner.......some of his half-brothers/sisters are probably Muslims !
Have they checked whether he's circumcised ? That might make him Muslim ?
You just cannot believe the bigotry and ignorance of the American public.
R. Karim, London, UK
Here's what must be made clear to people not completely familiar with "regular" Americans' thinking, i.e., those who are not members of the liberal elite: these people readily understand when someone explains the extreme sounding statements in black churches are part of a tradition going back to slavery times, and they are not bothered by that because what goes on in others' churches does not have anything to do with their lives. But Obama wants to be in everybody's life, as president. That he says he "disagrees" with some of his pastor's statements would not matter a whit to average people, who understand if you attend, say, the regular meeting of the nazi party and then say you (respectfully) "disagree", that means nothing. Obama is running for president, not preacher or teacher or even moral healer-in-chief. He's scary to many people now; he's become toxic. Hillary will be seen as someone who can restart the furnace or fix the plumbing, as necessary. That's relevant.
Rodger Lodger, New York, New York USA
We were up in arms when radical mullahs were preaching death and destruction to Britain, EU and America here in UK...
Would you attend a mosque/church/temple or any other place of worship for 20 years if the mullah/pastor/priest preached venom? I would not.....
Ofcourse If I am choosing to go and listen to such violent diatribe and venom in a place of worship then I am responsible for my judgement...
What does that say about Obama? It is for you guys to think...he always came across as a smooth talker...nothing more...
Btw...I am neither Black or White...
Rakesh Sumit, London, UK
it seems to me that Senator Obama is like all politicians. He uses people to get power. Magic, he's got black and white parents and can obviously 'empathise' with both groups and no doubt 'understands' how they feel. However he seems to be just another middle class American on his way to the White House. White people can vote for him and feel good that they voted for a black man. Many African Americans will vote for him because they hope he will be different from all those who have gone before him.
However, if America really had wanted a credible African American candidate, who seems to be in touch with the poor and disenfranchised then why ain't they pleading for Jessie Jackson to stand. That must be the reason tens of thousands of African Americans are turned off by Obama.
Unfortunately Obama seems just like another Tony Blair; trying to be all things to all men and pleasing no one in the end.
A Thomas, Durham,
Congratulations for Daniel Finkelstein on this brilliant article, and in a way we all are lucky in getting to know Barrack Obama and, on the way , we are able to give our full support to this world citizen who hopefully wil be the next President of the USA. Getting the best out of people, countries and issues means coming together and that is in my opinon the basic message from Obama.
Bless you Obama, and Bless the USA.
Louis Pascal de Geer, Barretos / SP, Brazil
I think that Obama is an exceptional candidate and don't believe it's humanly possible for an acutely intelligent directly biracial person raised in a loving family to have a monoracial perspective. Yet I am concerned that he seems so conservative in his acceptance of the rigid race communitarian terminology and framework that divides US society and believe there will be real progress only when it is not considered normal for someone like Obama to be described/self-describe as African American rather than EurAfrican American and black rather than brown.
Nina, London, UK
A wise man once said - do not play politics with peoples lives, how very true. How would the white community have coped with being debased, denigrated, raped, manipulated, enslaved, murdered and defiled for 400 years?
Is an ounce of understanding beyond contemplation - it seems to be the biggest fear many in the white community have - an angry, intelligent proud black man.
Before reconciliation can be achieved both sides have to come to terms with where they are at - for better or for worse. We need to understand each others fears and hopes and work together to achieve them. It is through non partisanship and working together we lift eah other to a higher level.
Black people should be entitled to work from strength, so should the white community. We need to be able to be truthful to each other without fear of reprisal or denunciation.
Most of all we need to stop playing politics with the issues.
Vernon Butcher, BASINGSTOKE, England
I have not read in any of the comments regarding Reverend Wright's speech that the words, 'Chickens coming home to roost', were first uttered by either Malcom X or Stockley Carmicael on the assassination of President Kennedy. This comment raised great outrage alhough, in my opinion, it reflected a true/possible interpretation of the event and times.
Neale.
neale Beckwith, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
As usual the Obama sychophants,such as Ms.Nightingale,
have rushed to judgement without bothering to tease out exactly what the seemingly untouchable senator did,or,more importantly,did not,say in the course of his carefully constructed,and undoubtedly elegant,speech.
All the rhetorical flannel does not disguise the fact that the senator attended the ''Reverend'' Wright's institution for twenty years,without,apparently,finding anything objectionable in the latter's continuous racially charged and hate-filled rants during that period.His suggestion that he had only become aware of the ''God damn America'' utterance during the past few weeks constitutes a typical,self-styled intellectual's contempt for the intelligence of the populace at large.
Incidentally,he still has not ventured any opinion of Wright's not so distant visit to Ghadaffi,in the esteemed company of Louis Farakhan,during which their host promised them both substantial financial support.
Show me your friends,etc.
Louis Healy, Dublin, Ireland
Obama could have simply glossed his speech and throw Mr Wright 'under the bus' but he didn't. He simply told the truth, something politicians don't do.
America needs a leader with a sensible approach, an approach that will make the world a safer place and from what I have seen of the current candidates, Obama is simply the man.
Has the war in Iraq made the world a safer place, are Americans under any lesser threat than they were prior to Sep 11? I don't think so actually, the threat to the US has been made worse by the crazy approach of the current Adminstration.
Listen to Obama, rise above all this negative propaganda that is been thrown around to try and undermine his candidacy and tackle the issues by a diplomatic approach this means working together.
Obama is what America and the world needs right now, regardless of his colour, religion or race. I hope the Americans realise this.
Peter Simeon, London,
Well said, Nisha.
Ben , Yorktown, Indiana, USA
Why is Obama's loyalty to his church an issue. Its a meritocratic choice, and he is obviously worthy candidate.
Bob Evans, Anaheim, California.
indeed: it seems that you cast your opinion on a election you aren't actually observing. More that your prejudice opinions are cemented by your lack of knowledge and wit.
There is no reason to be immediately skeptical of Obama, 'yes we can' may not be message appropriate for your obvious intelligence........ but at the same time it is a clear symbol, a message a nation could follow irrellevant of opinion such as your own, disrupting the only potential candidate worthy of improving America.
Lisa Stevens, Maidstone, England
Obama is setting race relations back 20 years or more. People are scared to talk about him like lets say John Kerry or Al Gore in the previous elections. No one wants to be branded racist. In today's political correctness, attacking Obama on policy is equal with racism. Obama is allowed exceptions no other candidate in history, has had and the intimidation machine is in full swing. Funny how these Rev Wright allegations all came out mid primaries. Had it been revealed earlier Obama would not have had a chance. Behind closed doors people are saying things that I, a member of an even smaller minority group find troubling. Political correctness is about to turn the other way, it's a good thing but also scary.
Either everything should be allowed, or nothing!
Ian, Boynton Beach, Florida, USA
As a black African woman, I was getting swept up in Obama-mania.I was delighted by how America had embraced him...and then the pastor debacle happened and the REAL America surfaced.
I find it laughable and hypocritical that a nation built on the very worst kind of racism should be up in arms over a black pastor venting about injustices that he had suffered.Americans now have the perfect excuse to send Obama to the back of the bus where he belongs.
Shame on you guys.
Nkechi, London, England
White voter votes white cadidate...no issue. Black voter votes black candidate...'Divisive','they vote along race lines'. The current debate about Obama and race demonstrates why the best candidate (on this occasion) may never get the job. It is the reason why the MSM never challenge Hillary's so-called 'experience' - I.e. sharing a bedroom with the President. The US constitution stipulates age limits for running for office. Hillary is never made to justify how the 14-year age gap she has over Barack makes her a better candidate.
Why US minorities constantly permit themselves to be baited by race debates is beyond me...they are always defined by their race first regardless of their achievement.
Ben Jay, London, UK
The fact is that the American people perhaps do not deserve the progressive and inherently uniting approach of Barack Obama. Your nation is inertial; divided by a history of racial bias. The hope remains that the demographic proponderance of white obtuse racial viewpoints do not steer those presently wisely unmotivated by such a limiting outlook in the same wrong direction. The success of American society hinges on its legitimacy as a democracy of choice and example to other nations. Clearly, America must reach beyond its self-professed 'arrogance of entitlement' on the world scene as the 'best country in the world' through demonstrating a positive example through the right leadership. Barack Obama will open this door on your behalf. There is no better candidate running to realize America's true potential in this regard. Ultimately, as a nation, you get what you deserve. Fear of diversity is merely a product of lack of confidence in oneself.
James F, Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, Canada
Don Imus had a talk radio show in NY and he called a basketball team of black women "nappy headed hoes". Well Imus was fired and at that time when asked about this Obama offered that he would not have anyone on his staff who said anything racist like that. All the time he had Pastor Poison on his advisory committee. Can you say hipocrite?
Jerry, seattle , usa
I watched Obama's speech and thought it was wonderful and he spoke from the heart. Benedict Nightingale got it right, a drama critic like my father.
Anybody who is shopping around looking for a reason to hate Barack Obama without referring to race can of course use Rev. Wright, or else that can say that he isn't experienced enough. Blacks have heard that many times when applying for a job. Maybe he isn't patriotic enough. If blacks hadn't been brought here in chains and treated as property for 400 years they might love the place more.
When Mrs. Clinton voted for the Iraq invasion it wasn't a call at 3 am, it was a deliberate decision based on political expediency. All McCain's experience and he still thinks all Iraqi insurgents belong to Al Qaida. Obama has judgement and wisdom far beyond his years. He will be the best president.
Christopher Hobe Morrison, Pine Bush, Ulster County, NY, USA
The 'other shoe' has dropped for Sen Obama...Chicago , was the first with his dealings with Mr Rezko....As his chance to be elected prior to all this...slim and none...Just like Bobby Kennedy...he too was slim and none....Talks the 'game',but...
Mr Tim, san marcos, U S of A /Ca
Senator Obama's speech was eloquent and insightful. He turned the hot steam of racial divisiveness into a learning experiencedisplaying grace and humility under pressure. Obama spoke from the heart about a difficult subject for Americans, some of whom may be inclined to prefer continued discord instead of forgiveness and healing. They will have to answer to their own consciences.
Mark, Shepherdstown, USA
Most of the commenters here entirely miss the point. First of all, pastor Wright is a nationally-known figure who has given probably thousands of sermons and speeches across the U.S. The media and right-wing politicians--who measure patriotism by whether or not people wear flag pins on their lapels--have chosen to focus on a few sound bites taken entirely out of context. But more importantly there are plenty of white fundamentalist ministers here in the U.S. who have delivered the same types of incendiary messages. Yet no one has asked McCain to explain how he can accept the support of Rev Hagee, Bob Jones University and other vessels of intolerance. But if the vast majority of us had to leave our churches for what our pastors said--or did--including in my own church with complicity of the church hierachy in hiding the pedophilia scandal--there would be no one left in the pews.
Martin Gawne, Chicago, Illinois
For 20 years, Mr. Obama has listened, and if he is to be believed, been influenced by the race-baiting and hatred of America to spill from Mr,. Wright's foul mouth. Two questions, then:
1. Why has he continued to stay with Mr. Wright through this shameful talk.
2. Why only now Mr. Obama sought to distance himself from Mr. Wright and disavow SOME of Mr,. Wright's diatribe? why did he wait until it was raised by the media and became a campaign issue?
Methinks the gentleman protesteth too much.
Bob Evans, Anaheim, California
Obama was reared by a white mother, white grandparents and for a few years by an Indonesian stepfather. He did not grow up in an African American community. I am the white mother of half black grown children. They have a different world view than children raised in all black or all white families. I am hoping the media will recognize that he has the perceptions of a biracial person. He is the best candidate we have had in many years. As an American expat who is actually engaged in a US election for the first time since Bobby Kennedy was assasinated in 1968; I am trying not to care too much, but hope is lovely for a change.
Anne Hyatt, Falmouth,Trelawny, Jamaica
Some of Rev J Wright's sermons would violate the hate-speech laws of at least one or two members of the EU and possibly Canada, Australia and New Zealand. I predict 55% for McCain, 19% for Obama, 16% for Nader and 10% other parties.
Doug Forbes, Columbus, USA
If my preacher preached hate in the temple I would stop going to the temple. You are accountable for what you listen to and support. Every one is missing the point. Places of worship like temples, churches etc are supposed to be giving message of peace, love, forgiveness, and acceptance not hatred. The Trinity Church is anti-white. They learn African American Theology. Sounds to me they need to learn more about the Bible. How are we as a nation ever going to move past race if you learn hate in a church where Love is supposed to be the message? How is this different from Madrasa?
nisha, LA, CA
Although I am thrilled to be living in an America that considers either a woman or African American viable candidates for our President, it is becoming unfortunately clear that, by comments made by Senator Obama's wife, and the twenty plus year association the Senator has had with a minister so obviously filled with hatred toward a race, that this has become not a race that will unite a nation, but will clearly divide it. If his lack of experience is not cause for concern as to his ability to perform his duties as the most influential person in our country, not to mention the world, the indications that he holds strong and dangerous views toward race more than enough to consider him a dangerous threat, not answer, toward uniting our country.
Robert Brammer, Westminster, Ma
sounds like obama wants it all his own way. he wants to highlight the racial bias of his opponents and sling mud on them for the most obtuse reference to the race issue implying that they are racist, while he alone believes he (and his supporters) can say or do anything in relation to the issue, including damning america. how he can reconcile that with the view that he can represent all americans seems hard to fathom.
derek, sydney, AUS